REGINA — It’s been over a year now since Chad Bachynski became the Mayor of Regina.
Bachynski sat down with SaskToday in early December to discuss his first year, the ongoing homelessness challenge and his hopes for 2026.
A year of learning and adjustments
Bachynski said the biggest challenge in his first year as mayor is learning everything.
“[I’m] coming into a brand new organization for me and learning the people, building relationships with both inside the city, our partners, our stakeholders, and just trying to get a lay of the land.”
As a husband and father, Bachynski admitted he has to adjust to balancing his work and home life.
“[So, I’m finding a] way to weave work in and out of the more non-traditional hours and extended hours that are just a part of the job.”
Homelessness
One major topic brought out numerous times this year at city council has been homelessness.
In a 2024 point-in-time (PIT) count done by Namerind Housing Corp., 824 homeless people were counted in the city. That number has jumped 255 per cent from 2015 (232 people counted).
Recently, the City of Regina received $1.1 million from the provincial government as part of its $20 million investment into improving the homelessness situation.
“[We] really make sure we have that immediate need if people need a space to be safe and get warm,” noted Bachynski.
While warming centres are seen as a positive direction, Bachynski understands it’s only a step.
He highlighted recent motions council passed for more accessible, affordable housing, including allowing manufactured homes across the city and investing $5.5 million from the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) towards strategic properties and land as part of the land bank. The properties in a land bank are then made available to community and trust, non-profit builders and for-profit builders of affordable housing.
Homeless advocates have also urged the city to work with the province on utilizing more vacant social housing units in Regina.
In speaking with the province, Bachynski said it all comes down to whether the units are in a livable state.
“Some of the feedback I've heard is that there's a capital investment that needs to happen there.”
Bachynski said further work is needed to understand what the outcome is and what the city needs to set it up first.
Costco fiasco
Costco had originally planned to build a second store at 8701 and 8702 Dewdney Avenue in the Westerra neighbourhood of Regina.
However, the store terminated its agreement with the city in December 2024 after finding a different location at the Global Transportation Hub (GTH) for a lower development cost.
To keep Costco within the city, council passed a motion in May to fork over $6.78 million from Regina’s land development reserve.
In the provincial auditor’s report, they noted better communication between the city and GTH could have avoided the payout. In the meantime, the NDP has asked the provincial government to reimburse the city.
“I would be more than happy if we had a cheque for Christmas to be paid back,” said Bachynski.
Since the incident, Bachynski has talked with the GTH and provincial government on the matter.
“[So], we will have those lines of communication open if and when a deal or anything like this would ever come up again.”
Bachynski also stressed how the GTH and Regina benefit from each other.
“The GTH is an asset to the city in terms of creating opportunities for industrial development. Regina is an amazing city that can, you know, have the trades and skills and the workforce that can work out at the GTH.”
Delegation
In May, city council had been deciding whether to keep the plan of implementing fluoride in the city’s drinking water by 2026.
The council meeting saw nearly 30 delegates from outside Saskatchewan, including Calgary and Ontario residents. Delegates from the U.S. also presented to council on the matter.
When asked about whether council should restrict non-residents from speaking, Bachynski described it as a “double-edged sword.”
“You may have experts that have information that don't necessarily reside in Regina. But it's a fair point when it comes to policies that affect Regina residents.
"[But] how do you make sure that the residents who are paying the tax dollars and getting the outcomes of those decisions? How do we make sure those voices are truly heard?” Bachynski added.
After the meeting, Coun. Sarah Turnbull (Ward 5) created a motion to only allow non-residents of Regina to speak upon approval from a councillor. This motion would ultimately gain no traction.
Bachynski couldn’t say if the subject would be brought up again in the future.
New housing developments
The City of Regina has seen several housing projects move along in 2025.
Coopertown, a new neighbourhood in northwest Regina, which was first approved in 2017, saw shovels hit the ground eight years later in 2025.
Recently, council approved the Negotiated Request for Proposal (NRFP) for choosing a developer for The Yards.
Following a strategic plan, The Yards could bring in an additional 2,000 residents from mixed-use housing south of Dewdney Avenue.
Bachynski spoke on the importance of new housing in the community.
“We're seeing the amount of serviced land diminish month after month. So we need to play some catch-up. That's part of the critical infrastructure.
"[This will] also maintain our housing prices because we don't want to have a tight market like that,” he added.
Bachynski sees The Yards as a huge opportunity for the city.
“It's such a unique space and a uniquely positioned space. I think with the investment that we've made on Dewdney (from the revitalization project), it's important that we take advantage of that.”
Top city entity workers leaving
The City of Regina made headlines after former city manager Niki Anderson was placed on leave in April before being fired in July. The city gave no reason as to why Anderson was let go, and Jim Nicol has assumed the role of acting city manager since then.
Around the same time that Anderson was placed on leave, former RPS Chief Farooq Sheikh was also placed on leave. Sheikh was fired in October after exchanging inappropriate private communications with a former member of the board of police commissioners.
In December, the RPS announced Lorilee Davies as the new chief.
Bachynski described every situation of employees leaving as unique.
“We've had some different departures for different reasons. And at the end of the day, it's not uncommon necessarily in some of those positions for some of the reasons to have a change when you've had a change in leadership.”
As for appointing a new city manager, Bachynski said the city is currently working through a hiring process.
“We're probably not looking to see any announcement made until probably later in 2026.”
Ensuring a healthy council
With Bachynski and 10 other councillors as part of city council, a variety of opinions can come up.
Even though council will debate amongst themselves, Bachynski said it’s important councillors show their passion.
“My council colleagues ran because they care about the city as well as I do.”
To ensure healthy relations, Bachynski said he holds monthly meetings with councillors.
Looking at next year
Bachynski outlined a plan to see how 24-hour construction can be integrated in 2026.
“[I want to] have administration take a look at how we're executing construction today and what is that kind of ratio or balance between construction execution efficiency and impact to businesses and residences.
“Where are the opportunities to extend hours [or] do 24-hour construction?” he added.
He also spoke on incentives for businesses.
“It would be incentives to do with tax abating where it's a longer-term look for the city.”
Bachynski said this would grow Regina’s business pool and grow revenue in taxes over time for the city.
One key item Bachynski is looking forward to discussing in 2026 is the city’s updated housing strategy.
“I'm really excited to see if we've really leaned into the fact that if we can continue to use vacant lots and vacant properties and start to get some of that infill development, that'll help us greatly in terms of our tax pressures."
