Mayor Chad Bachynski uses 1st state of the city address to pitch Regina to people in larger cities
Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski used his first state of the city speech to pitch Regina as the perfect place for people disillusioned with life in bigger cities.
"Residents here enjoy more free time compared to those in cities like Toronto, Vancouver or Halifax, spending less time commuting and more time doing what they love," he told a room full of people at the Conexus Arts Centre on Thursday.
"That's why we're encouraging residents in those larger cities to break up with their cities and move to Regina."
Bachynski said the city is launching a new advertising campaign to help push that message.
The City of Regina and Economic Development Regina have already created a new website — liveinregina.com — to draw potential residents to Saskatchewan's capital city.
"We all know how great Regina is and the opportunities that are here, and now we have a great opportunity to showcase that to other cities and attract people to come see it for themselves," Bachynski said.
WATCH|It was a hot election issue. Now Regina city councillors are examining REAL's future:
Economic Development Regina is also launching The Regina 25, a program meant to highlight 25 people who "dare to grow, inspire, and lay the foundation for our city's future"
"One of the greatest things about Regina is always its people," said Chris Lane, CEO of Economic Development Regina.
Nominations are already open and winners will be recognized in April.
Challenges ahead: Bachynski
Thursday marked three months since Bachynski was elected in an election that also brought eight other new members to city council.
Many of those new councillors were in attendance Thursday as Bachynski highlighted the problems he heard while on the campaign trail and what he hoped to do about them.
Mayor Chad Bachynski says now is the time to showcase Regina's strengths and attract people to come see the city for themselves. (Kirk Fraser/CBC)
That includes getting "creative" to address inflation while grappling with a proposed mill rate increase of 8.5 per cent and utility rate increase of 5.8 per cent in this year's budget. For the average homeowner, that works out to an increase of $27 a month or $320 a year.
"There will no doubt be tough decisions to make and difficult conversations to have as we juggle a number of priorities and ensure that taxpayers feel they are getting value for their dollars," Bachynski said.
The new mayor confirmed he is working with city administration to explore expediting construction projects and expanding the hours when construction is allowed to happen at night — a commitment he made while campaigning for mayor.
"There are budget and safety implications to consider, but we are moving forward on this," he said.
Other topics Bachynski touched on included the need for more to be done to address homelessness and a lack of affordable housing, and the start of construction on the city's new indoor aquatic facility.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Post-tropical storm Fiona shut down the Pictou Lodge in 2022. It's back in business
The Pictou Lodge Beach Resort is officially back in business after the nearly century-old business was severely damaged by post-tropical storm Fiona in September 2022. On Monday, Brad Hartlin, who owns the 99-year-old resort with his brother Mark, confirmed the news to CBC's Mainstreet Halifax. "It's been a long process, but we're very excited about the opportunity and I'm very thankful to be part of it," he said. In 2023, the previous owners concluded they couldn't continue to operate the business. The damage from Fiona included roofs being blown off cabins. Hartlin said he and his brother created a business plan to revive the lodge. The first step was talking to longtime staff with knowledge of the property to see what was possible. Some buildings were removed and some were sold by the previous owner. Hartlin noted Pictou Lodge will be a smaller operation. Previously, the lodge had 80 to 100 rooms, he said. This season, it will be operating with 41 rooms. "There's lots of room to grow in the future if we think that it can warrant it and we can pull it off. This year will be a learning curve for us," Hartlin said. "It's been three months now getting everything together and we're going to do it in baby steps. We're not going to reinvent the wheel or think that we can do anything much better than previous owners before, but smaller and then we'll grow into it." Some of the repairs have included redoing the roof on the main lodge, its chimney and the floors inside. Hartlin said the pool, which was completely redone, has reopened. There's also a beach, pond and trail on the property. "What we offer is nature. That's the No. 1 thing ... it's going to be a place that people can go and really relax and enjoy themselves," said Hartlin. Some former staff rehired Hartlin said people in the area have been very receptive to the lodge reopening. He said they were able to give some of the previous staff their jobs back. The kitchen will reopen next year, but Hartlin said it will operate as a taphouse this year. "The main lodge has been completely redone inside. It's got a very cool atmosphere and nostalgia that when people come in, they can sit and relax and have the memories of the Pictou Lodge — what it was and what it will be in the future," he said. MORE TOP STORIES
Business Wire
17 hours ago
- Business Wire
Cross River Launches Request for Payment (RfP) to Power Smarter, Real-Time Money Movement
FORT LEE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cross River Bank ('Cross River'), a technology infrastructure provider that offers embedded finance solutions, announced the launch of Request for Payment (RfP), a transformative addition to its growing suite of instant payment capabilities. The capability will streamline inbound money movement and enhance funding agility across the Real-Time Payments (RTP) ® network. Plaid will be the first to implement the feature, unlocking instant purchases through its bank payments platform, Plaid Transfer. A leader in instant payments and an early adopter of the RTP ® network, Cross River moves over $1 billion monthly in real-time disbursements across RTP ® and FedNow combined. However, while outbound payments have become instant, inbound funding has lagged — dependent on ACH and wire transfers that operate on batch processing and limited banking hours. Now, Cross River will be one of the first financial institutions to support RfP on the RTP ® network, paving the way for faster and more reliable pay-in options. 'The current reality of money movement is imbalanced — payments go out in seconds, but pay-ins often take a day or more,' said Adam Goller, EVP and Head of Fintech Banking at Cross River. 'RfP is a smarter, more flexible way to receive incoming funds. It gives our partners greater control over timing, real-time visibility into each transaction, and reduces the need for overfunding or constant balance monitoring — all while delivering a better experience for the end user.' RfP allows businesses to send a secure, digital request for payment — enabling payers to authorize and send funds instantly with greater control, a significant step forward in streamlining the payment experience and reducing friction in how money moves. With RfP, businesses will be able to instantly fund digital wallets and accounts, reduce operational friction from delayed deposits, and improve customer experience with smooth, real-time pay-in options. Plaid, the first to implement RfP functionality with Cross River, will enable real-time pay-ins for Carvana customers. This integration allows car buyers to complete purchases instantly and seamlessly — eliminating the friction typically caused by traditional bank transfers. 'Instant payment rails unlock huge value for businesses and end customers by reducing friction, accelerating funding, and boosting conversion,' said Brian Dammeir, Global Head of Payments and Financial Management at Plaid. 'Through our partnership with Cross River, Plaid Transfer now offers instant pay-ins, instant payouts and Same Day ACH, as part of a full solution with best-in-class account linking and optimized conversion, so customers can tailor bank payments across their business.' Built on Cross River's proprietary API-based banking core infrastructure, COS, the RfP solution was developed with security, transparency, and compliance at its core. Each RfP is presented to the recipient by the receiving financial institution for explicit authorization, ensuring full control over every transaction. This adds a critical layer of security and trust, while improving the user experience on both ends of the exchange. Cross River is continuing its mission to modernize financial services and provide real-time tools that reflect the pace of today's economy. This new capability reflects Cross River's commitment to building a more inclusive and modern financial system — where speed and safety go hand in hand. About Cross River Cross River provides technology infrastructure powering the future of financial services. Leveraging its proprietary real-time banking core, Cross River delivers innovative and scalable embedded payments, cards, lending, and crypto solutions to millions of consumers and businesses. Cross River is backed by leading investors and serves the world's most essential fintech and technology companies. Leading the industry, Cross River is reshaping global finance and financial inclusion. Member FDIC. Find out more at
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Alberta asks for a West Coast pipeline as a nation-building project
The federal government has tabled a signature piece of legislation designed to invest in what Prime Minister Carney is referring to as 'nation-building projects.' The CBC's Sam Brooks takes us into how the Alberta government is responding.
