Bidders only have a few weeks to buy the chance to rename the Town of Duck Lake. (Image Credit: Nigel Maxwell/paNOW staff)

By Susan McNeil

Name that town

No bids yet as deadline approaches for Duck Lake naming rights

Mar 9, 2026 | 1:57 PM

It doesn’t appear the Town of Duck Lake is going to change its name.

The community is just weeks away from a deadline to submit bids for the naming rights and hasn’t received any yet.

“Was I ever actually expecting any? It’s a hard call,” said Mayor Jason Anderson.

For him, the idea was worth the effort since it put Duck Lake on the map. He said the story went national and even received some international attention.

From a business perspective, he can see why companies may be thinking twice about paying money to name a town in rural Saskatchewan.

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“Will they get enough return on their investment in order to do it? Boy, that’s a tough call, but was it worth putting it out there? Absolutely.”  

When Anderson’s idea first came to light, some of the town’s residents were not very happy about it and vocalized their anger online and to town representatives.  

Anderson said if an offer does come in, a community vote about the name change will take place. And while he appreciates some residents still aren’t fond of the idea, he doesn’t think they understand exactly what could come about with the opportunity. The main reason for putting the name up for bids was to get revenue into the town’s coffers to pay for services.  

“The largest complaint that we have here is our water and the roads, and they’re just not cheap.”

Anderson said while other communities in the area, like Prince Albert and Saskatoon, saw phenomenal growth in past years, Duck Lake did not.

“We just stayed stagnant, and if you don’t have an increase in population and all the extra tax base you should have…we have to pay for it one way or another.” 

That will likely come in the form of a tax increase in the budget for the town’s roughly 600 residents. That is, unless someone comes in at the last minute with a significant offer to change the name of Duck Lake. Anderson said bids will be accepted until the end of March.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com