REGINA, Sask. — Two different community needs are being tackled with one funding decision, directing money toward downtown housing construction while also setting aside funds for a North Central park.
Regina city council has unanimously approved its Housing Accelerator Fund recommendations after debating how to allocate $3 million between a pilot program for market-rate housing and improvements to Parkdale Park.
The decision followed an amendment from Coun. Sarah Turnbull to divide the funding equally, with $1.5 million going toward the Market Housing Capital Grant pilot and $1.5 million earmarked for Parkdale Park. The amendment passed 10-1 before council unanimously approved the overall recommendations.
The proposed Market Housing Capital Grant pilot is intended to encourage residential construction in the Downtown and Centre Square areas. Eligible projects must include at least 20 units, with grants capped at $50,000 per unit.
Coun. David Froh supported the housing incentive, arguing that Regina needs to consider the longer-term economic implications of encouraging development.
“You can’t just save your way into the black,” Froh said.
His argument centred on the potential value of attracting investment and adding housing, rather than judging the program only by its immediate cost to the city.
Turnbull, meanwhile, raised concerns about committing public money when the details of potential projects remain uncertain. She said council needed a clearer picture of what developments might qualify and how the program would work in practice.
“It is very difficult to make decisions about hypothetical mystery projects,” Turnbull said.
The exchange highlighted a challenge for council as it considers incentives designed to stimulate private construction: the city wants to encourage development, but councillors must still decide how much public funding to commit before knowing exactly which projects will proceed.
The grant pilot is focused on market housing, meaning it is not a direct program to provide subsidized homes for low-income residents. Instead, it is intended to encourage developers to build residential units in targeted parts of the city. Whether those units improve affordability for residents will depend on the projects that emerge and the rents or prices they ultimately command.
The city’s broader housing strategy is backed by a federal Housing Accelerator Fund agreement worth $35.275 million. Regina’s target is to achieve 1,100 additional housing units above its average annual growth by December 2026.
City administration has identified roughly 360 underutilized lots in the broader city-centre area as potential opportunities for development. The grant program is one tool intended to help unlock that potential, although the number of suitable sites does not guarantee that projects will be built.
Downtown housing growth could bring more residents into the city centre and support nearby businesses. However, the effectiveness of the program will depend on whether developers take advantage of the grants and whether the resulting projects address the city’s housing needs.
The Parkdale Park allocation provides a separate investment in neighbourhood infrastructure. By retaining $1.5 million for the park, council chose not to direct the entire amount toward the downtown housing incentive.
That decision gives both priorities a place in the approved recommendations, rather than requiring one to receive the full allocation at the expense of the other.
The funding decision also leaves questions for the next stage of implementation. The city will need to move the grant pilot forward and determine how the money will be used for Parkdale Park. The council vote establishes the direction for the funding, but it does not, by itself, establish the final details or outcomes of either initiative.
