REGINA — The second day of the 2026/2027 Regina budget deliberations saw a handful of delegates opposed to potential cuts to services and programs.
SaskToday compiled the most notable topics, which include:
Regina Fire & Protective Services
The City of Regina has laid out six options for cuts to Regina Fire & Protective Services for a total of roughly $11 million.
Notable cuts include closing an existing station, not proceeding with Fire Station #8, and laying off 60 staff.
Tyler Packham of the Regina Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 181 said the city is already falling behind on its timeline for the fire master plan, which was approved in 2021.
This plan includes numerous new fire stations over the next 25 years, but none have been built since the plan’s approval.
Packham spoke on the risk of maintaining current service levels.
“Cancelling Station #8 and removing apparatuses would cause an increase in travel distances and times for first aid units, leave some neighbourhoods with significantly worse coverage than others, and increase the chance for multiple overlaps with few units available to cover.”
Packham also alluded that a slower response could impact insurance rates for homeowners and businesses, making the city less attractive for newcomers.
He requested council reject the council and directed administration to work closely with Regina Fire.
Transit
The City of Regina has outlined 16 options for a total of $45 million in cuts to transit.
These cuts include eliminating holiday service, reducing hours for transit and paratransit, and eliminating routes 15 to 17.
In total, 49 full-time employees could lose their jobs from these cuts.
In response to these potential cuts, ATU Local 588 has voted for a strike mandate.
ATU Local 588 president Sukhwinder Singh spoke in front of council on the impact of these cuts.
“Any cut to transit is not merely trimming the fat, but actually [it’s] cutting into the core muscle that keeps our community strong.”
Singh called reducing transit hours from 1 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. “inhumane.”
“People will be strongly harmed by these reductions of service hours.”
Singh also urged council to keep in mind the impact on ridership for people with accessibility issues, including students or seniors.
Conservatory
The Regina Floral Conservatory has made headlines as the city outlines a potential decommission of the space.
Doing this would save the city $73,000.
Regina Floral Conservatory chair Jolene Norleen said the conservatory has seen great success recently, posting an 11 per cent increase in visitors last year, for over 23,000.
She also noted the conservatory has seen a handful of visitors across Canada, the U.S., and outside North America.
“[So] the garden sector has been seen as an essential part of tourism.”
Beyond tourism, members of the conservatory said it’s a welcoming space for people.
“As a newcomer, that’s important,” noted Mariana Hinojosa Centella, vice-president of the Regina Floral Conservatory.
“It makes you embrace your heritage and want to give back to the community,” she added.
Norleen urged the city to remove the conservatory from any potential plans for decommissioning.
Improving city operations
The Regina Civic Middle Management Association and city worker unions, which represent over 2,000 staff, believe council should pass a high mill rate of 18.93 per cent.
This mill rate was presented as an option by city administration, which includes adding more services.
Ian Cantello, president of the Regina Civic Middle Management Association, said this decision would allow Regina “to have the bright future it deserves.”
He mentioned the difficulty Regina faces with its location and climate.
“Regina is flat, which makes it very difficult to get drinking water and wastewater to move where we want them to. That causes the sewers to be more expensive to operate.”
This year alone, Regina invested roughly $75 million into two wastewater lift stations.
Cantello also mentioned Regina has no sufficient body of water to source drinking water. The City of Regina utilizes the Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Plant, located roughly an hour from the city.
Other factors Regina faces are variations in weather temperatures throughout the year and harsh soil conditions, noted Cantello.
With these four factors, Cantello said it costs more to run Regina than most other North American cities.
Since Regina has passed low mill rates previously to 2025, Cantello said, “It’s taking a toll on our ability to make our city work for residents.”
Businesses
Developers and representatives of businesses urged council not to pass a 15.69 per cent mill rate.
Tony Prsa of Harvard Developments Corp. said buildings facing tax increases will increase costs for businesses.
“[This] will directly raise operating costs for businesses and combine the increased tax level with other costs of operating a business, such as utility and insurance.”
Prsa also said businesses are facing an uptick in lease rates as reassessments continue to increase the cost of buildings, especially downtown.
From these increases, Prsa said businesses will consider cutting staff, reducing hours and viability.
He suggested a feasible mill rate would be between 5 and 5.5 per cent.
Meanwhile, Mike Tate, CEO of the Regina & District Chamber of Commerce, said a reasonable method for the city to receive revenue is expanding the tax base.
This includes modernizing “non-residential development charges by shifting from per-hectare fees to a building-based (GFA) model to keep large-footprint employers in the city and strengthen the long-term tax base.”
Tate has previously expressed concern over businesses leaving the city for more affordable areas.
Grant program
The Community Investment Grant Program (GICP) has been outlined as a potential cut of $5.37 million from budget reduction options.
Through the CIGP, the city “partners with community non-profit organizations to deliver programs and services to Regina residents that align with city priorities, have a clear community impact and respond to community needs,” notes the city’s website.
In 2023 alone, the city said 152 non-profits were impacted by the grant.
This includes the Saskatchewan Art Alliance (SAA).
“The CIGP funding has helped our sector deliver programs, build partnerships, support residents, and create spaces that strengthen community life said Em Ironstar, executive director of the SAA.
Sam Karikas, CEO of the RCMP Heritage Centre, called the grant funding essential and supportive of the local economy.
Through working with vendors and partners, Karikas said the group economic assessment indicates that for every dollar invested by the city, the RCMP Heritage Centre generates $137 in economic activity.
“[In total], we leverage the $80,000 annual grant from the City of Regina to almost $11 million in economic activity,” she added.
Delegates will continue to present to council as the day continues.
