Regina Minute: Issue 122

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

📅 This Week In Regina: 📅

• There will be a special City Council meeting tomorrow at 1:00 pm, the first of three sittings dedicated to Regina's 2027 general operating budget. Administration's preliminary forecast estimates it would cost an additional $44.7 million to maintain the City's current service levels next year, which on its own would push the property tax increase well above what Council has said it will accept. Council has set a goal of keeping Regina's property taxes within the lowest 25% of comparator Canadian cities, which caps the 2027 mill rate increase at 5.81%. To fit under that cap, Administration is proposing to reduce a planned transfer of $3,117,000 to the transit fleet reserve and to find $1,406,000 in service reductions. Those reductions include cutting the frequency of road line-painting, eliminating towing for the spring street sweep, scaling back contractor support for dust suppression, delaying an outdoor washroom strategy, and cutting 1.5 casual positions. The forecast is for discussion only, with final decisions to come when Council tables its proposed budget in November and holds its budget meetings in December.
  
  
• City Council will vote on Wednesday at 1:00 pm on a request from the Globe Theatre for a $1,386,000 emergency grant, one of the major items at the second of Council's two meetings this week. The theatre says cashflow pressures from its major renovation have drained its cash reserves, and that without immediate financial support it will begin an orderly shutdown or a significant reduction of operations. The money would be withdrawn from the City's General Fund Reserve, whose forecast uncommitted balance of $21.3 million already sits well below its $35.8-million minimum. Administration acknowledges that giving extra money to organizations already receiving Community Partner grants is not standard practice, as the Globe collects $128,000 per year from the City through 2028, but claims the grant protects the City's previous $8.58-million investment in the renovation and that the theatre's troubles are not caused by declining ticket sales. In total, the Globe needs roughly $16.3 million to pay off its outstanding debts and payables, and it is working to secure $12 million from the federal government along with about $2.9 million pledged from fundraising, sponsorships and other sources. Administration says the one-time grant would let the theatre operate through its 2026-27 season.
  
  
• Also on the agenda for Wednesday's 1:00 pm City Council meeting is a motion from Ward 2 Councillor George Tsiklis proposing a package of increases to Councillors' own expense allowances. The motion would direct Administration to report back during the 2027-2028 budget deliberations on doubling the annual travel and communication allowance from $10,000 to $20,000 and doubling the home and office allowance from $3,800 to $7,600. It would also amend the City's code of ethics bylaw and related policies to let each Councillor claim reimbursement for one additional spouse or guest ticket for City-related events attended in an official capacity, and would approve automatic annual inflation adjustments to the allowances beginning in 2027. Tsiklis argues that rising ticket, sponsorship and travel costs mean Councillors routinely cover legitimate expenses personally, and that the financial burden and family strain of the role deter qualified candidates from seeking office. 
  
  
• Two more budget-focused motions from Councillor Tsiklis are also on the agenda for Wednesday's meeting. The first, titled Project Service Prioritization, would direct Administration to classify all City services into categories such as core, discretionary and hybrid, with cost breakdowns, and to develop options for a three-to-five-year plan that could cut annual spending and reduce the property taxes collected by 5% to 10%. That motion says the City delivers more than 60 services while deferring infrastructure maintenance, creating a large infrastructure deficit and driving record property tax increases. The second motion directs Administration to study a 12-month downtown pilot program called "Project No Excuses," a name intended to reflect the goal of removing common barriers - such as parking fees, parking restrictions, and transit fares - that discourage people from visiting downtown. As part of the 2027-2028 budget process, Administration would examine options including free two-hour on-street parking and fare-free transit on designated downtown routes. The pilot would be evaluated using measures such as transit ridership, business activity, foot traffic, public safety, congestion, and overall economic impacts through regular reporting to Council. The motion also requires Administration to identify funding sources and cost offsets to ensure the program would have no impact on property taxes, including efficiencies, grants, partnerships, and projected economic benefits.
  
  
• Meanwhile, Regina Councillors are wrestling with how much the City can actually do to reach its housing targets after reviewing a draft of a new housing strategy at last week's Executive Committee. The strategy sets four priorities and goals that include building a net of 1,500 new homes a year by 2031, rising to 2,000 by 2036, and keeping the rental vacancy rate at or above 3%. Much of the plan relies on advocacy rather than direct action, including asking the Province and Ottawa for more capital funding, requesting the removal of provincial sales tax from new home construction, and pushing for national building code changes to lower construction costs. Administration looked at rent control and a landlord registry but left both out, saying they are best handled by the Province. The report also found that of 86 actions in the City's 2013 housing strategy, 38 were completed, 24 were partially completed and 24 were never done. Ward 3 Councillor David Froh asked for a further report on tools such as tax increment financing and whether the City could act as a developer for infill projects, and the strategy is expected to return to Council before heading back to committee in September.

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