Mayor Bachynski says 2026 a ‘turning point’ for Regina in annual State of the City address

Mayor Chad Bachynski reflects on 16 months in office and showcases the future of Regina. Donovan Maess reports.

In his second State of the City address since taking the office, Mayor Chad Bachynksi says Regina is on the track to stability.

“This was a very hard year,” he admitted as part of his speech. “It was a catch up. The budget process was challenging, but also more transparent and more detailed than ever before, which is exactly what the public deserves.”

The luncheon, presented by Kiwanis Club Regina Wascana, was held at the Conexus Arts Centre on Thursday.

Bachynski, who assumed the role after winning the 2024 civic election, addressed the luncheon just months after council passed Regina’s highest single year property tax increase ever at 10.9 per cent.

The cause, he says, was continued underfunding in terms of maintaining core infrastructure by previous administrations.

Something the mayor hopes the recent tax hike has corrected.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a blaming,” said Bachynski. “I would say everybody made decisions for reasons at the time. It’s the reality of the matter.”

“I’m not going to speculate on what those reasons were, but we can say there’s a reason why the reserves are depleted. And that’s because they were used to keep mill rates low. That is a factual statement of math,” he added.

• City council approves record 10.9% property tax increase, 7.82% utility rate hike

Now Bachynski is calling 2026 a “turning point” year for the entire city.

“It’s acknowledgment of where we’re at, an acknowledgment of our finances and acknowledging the infrastructure [deficit],” he said. “But it’s also acknowledging we see a clearer path.”

A clearer path which Bachynski hopes does not impact residents to the extent the 2026 budget approval did.

“My expectation is it’s a correction,” he told reporters. “We acknowledge now we have a correction and my expectation is that we see more predictable single increases.”

Highlighting growth

It has been just 16 months since Bachynski – and many of his councillors – took on their current jobs.

“It was a year of learning, about growth, of challenges and frankly trying to bring stability to our city,” Bachynski said as part of his address. “With that came the responsibility and the opportunity to set up a long term direction for Regina’s future.”

“Together with administration we devolved council’s four-year plan to build around four key priorities: infrastructure, vibrancy, livability and prosperity,” he added.

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Through his speech, the mayor highlighted the successes of the city over the past year.

• 90 per cent increase of building permits
• 350 new affordable housing units
• Approving 26 underutilized or derelict sites for redevelopment
• Launching new neighborhoods
• Top national rankings for affordability
• 5.5 per cent increase in the job market

“Together, these trends signal a growing confidence in Regina’s economy and highlight the opportunities that our city continues to offer,” said Bachynski.

The mayor also highlighted how the city hopes to continue the momentum with its new strategic approach to growing Regina further.

“Regina is growing faster than ever and our development landscape is evolving in exciting ways,” Bachynski noted. “This year, council also approved Regina’s first growth plan, possibly one of the most important decisions that we will make.”

“We need a clear, data driven approach to facing neighborhoods based on infrastructure capacity, especially wastewater. This plan does exactly that,” he added.

• Council passes new growth plan, aims to remove ‘politically driven’ approvals of development

While speaking to media following the address, Bachynski recognized the State of the City as a time of great reflection.

“It’s a time to acknowledge some of the challenges [we’ve] faced, but also share the pretty incredible things we have going on in the city and the smart decisions we’ve made over the past year,” he said.

Opening up

As a first-term mayor, Bachynski was not shy to share the struggles he has faced since taking office.

“It is okay, even for those in leadership roles, to be vulnerable and ask for help and to lean on supports,” he said candidly.

“My hope is people can see behind the titles, we are human beings, doing the best to serve, to learn and to grow every single day,” Bachynski added.

The mayor says comments have attacked him personally and even have been directed at his family.

“When there’s things posted on social media or otherwise, that’s challenging,” he said. “That’s hard for everybody and their families and I think everybody would agree with that.”

“But at the same time, a lot of it is motivation,” the mayor added.

In response to the comments, Mayor Bachynski is hopeful to open the line of communication.

He announced Thursday he will be launching a new initiative next month to have regular coffee times so residents can have more opportunities for conversations, face-to-face.

“What I’ve learned over the last year, in the world of social media the most effective conversations I have every day are face-to-face, not online with comments,” Bachynski said. “I’m excited to learn what I’m going to hear. It’s going pretty wide open and the whole intent is to learn what people are thinking about.”

More details and a schedule are expected to be released in the coming days.