REGINA — The City of Regina will provide upwards of $1.5 million to help host the 2027 Grey Cup bid, per a 6-2 approval at Wednesday’s city council meeting.
The Canadian Football League announced Regina as the host city last September. Prior to the announcement, the city committed more than $1.5 million to the Saskatchewan Roughriders during a private meeting, with the funding to be provided through two separate contributions.
“Currently, we’re estimating between $300,000 and $400,000 in value from the Regina Police Service for enforcement and protection and setting up during the festival. So that would be roughly down to $1.1 million to $1.2 million contribution [of] cash from the city [for operations],” said Jennifer Johnson, deputy city manager for communications, Service Regina and tourism.
As it currently stands, the upwards of $1.5 million contribution from the city would be funded through the 2027 mill rate, though the exact funding source will be finalized in December.
One option council could choose instead of funding through taxpayer money is the general fund reserve, which is well below the city’s minimum threshold, according to Jeff May, City of Regina acting chief financial officer.
“The current uncommitted balance in the general fund reserve is $20.7 million, so if we were to withdraw up to $1.5 million, that would leave it at $19.2 million. And for context, the recommended minimum balance for the general fund reserve is $35.8 million.”
Ward 8 Coun. Shanon Zachidniak voiced opposition to the use of taxpayer funds, recommending that council instead finance the bid solely through reserve funds at Wednesday’s meeting.
However, most councillors, including Mayor Chad Bachynski, felt it would be preferable to wait for administration to determine the precise funding details.
“There is not a final definitive answer as to [taxpayer increase] is 100 per cent, even the mix of mill rate and reserve [is something] I would be interested to see as they work through that.”
Ultimately, Zachidniak's motion was defeated in a 7-1 vote.
Based on other scenarios, the city may also draw on surpluses and additional revenue sources as part of its contribution.
Benefits
City administration outlined positive numbers seen from Regina hosting the 2022 Grey Cup.
In 2022, the event saw nearly $44 million in local economic impact, over $500,000 in economic revenue for the city and over 26,500 out-of-town visitors.
“Ninety-two per cent of those visitors stayed overnight in Regina for an average of about 3 1/2 nights. So, that is a pretty big impact for the city,” noted Johnson.
Revenue generated through destination marketing fees paid by overnight visitors in Regina is collected by the Regina Hotel Association, which then allocates a portion of those funds to Tourism Regina for marketing initiatives, said Johnson.
Beyond tourism, the city could recoup nearly $400,000 for the event through a $12 facility fee applied to ticket sales between Saskatchewan Roughriders home games and the Grey Cup.
For the next roughly two decades, the city is contributing $11.5 million to pay off debt from a financed $200.4 million loan to help fund the construction of Mosaic Stadium.
The city also confirmed that ongoing construction at the new Indoor Aquatics Facility and Taylor Field will not affect the event.
“We will be making plans to close roads that need to be closed and make alternative transportation routes as needed,” said Johnson.
