Regina Minute: Issue 119

Regina Minute - Your weekly one-minute summary of Regina politics

📅 This Week In Regina: 📅

• There are no City Council or Committee meetings scheduled this week. The next meetings are the Accessibility Advisory Committee on July 20th at 4:00 pm, the Regina Planning Commission on July 21st at 4:00 pm and the Executive Committee on July 22nd at 9:00 am, with City Council itself next meeting on July 28th and 29th at 1:00 pm.
  
  
• The Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association and the Canadian Bison Association say they have received eviction notices following the sale of several REAL District buildings to Brandt, leaving both organizations searching for new office space. The groups warn the loss of facilities could create challenges for future editions of Canadian Western Agribition, which relies on much of the existing exhibition space to host livestock and related events. Agribition organizers say they are working to ensure the event remains financially viable and that sufficient space will be available, while the City of Regina and Brandt say discussions are ongoing to meet the show's long-term needs. Both agricultural organizations say the short notice has created uncertainty and stress, while expressing concern about the future of one of Regina's largest agricultural events.
  
  
• Former Regina Police Chief Farooq Sheikh is appealing his dismissal. Sheikh was dismissed by Regina's Board of Police Commissioners in October 2025 after an investigation by the Public Complaints Commission found evidence of inappropriate text messages between him and a former board member, along with a closed-door discussion about changes to his contract that took place while he was absent. He had been hired by the Regina Police Service in December 2023 after serving as chief of the Alberta sheriffs. The appeal will be heard by a three-member panel over six days in September, from September 14th to 17th and September 23rd to 24th. There is no fixed timeline for a decision following the hearing, with the Commission saying a written decision will be released once a determination has been made.
  
  
• The owner of Sherwood Greenhouse and Garden Centre says a City road closure has cut his customer traffic from 30 or 40 customers a day to about 5. The North Service Road near Victoria Avenue is closed until the end of August so crews can replace a box culvert, a concrete structure that channels water under the road, after recent heavy rain turned a long-standing bump in the road into a cavity. Owner Phillip Rispens says the City has known about the problem for some time, pointing to a reduced speed limit sign that has been in place for over a year, and argues the issue could have been fixed when the bypass was built. Customers have told the business they found the closure signs and detour route confusing, with some assuming the greenhouse was closed entirely, and some delivery trucks have refused to take the detour. The project's representative claims the work was moved forward from August because of safety concerns and will be finished by the end of August, weather permitting.
  
  
• In more City infrastructure news, Bushwakker Brewpub has reopened after a two-week closure caused by a City water line break outside its Dewdney Avenue building. The break flooded the brewpub, and staff say the concrete floor still shows heaving where the water came in. The business was frustrated that it took about three hours for the water to be shut off, alleging that a shutoff valve had been relocated during construction and that City crews initially did not know its new location. The failure came less than a year after the completion of a $33-million street revitalization project on Dewdney Avenue that replaced underground mainlines but not the older pipes connecting to buildings, and the restaurant says it was one of the City's old pipes that failed. A City contractor finished repairs and restored the streetscape on Canada Day, and the pub reopened to customers the next day.

🚨 This Week’s Action Item: 🚨

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