Controversial apartment build in Regina neighbourhood could be green-lit Tuesday

Updated story can be read here: Regina city council heavily in favour of disputed Douglas Park apartment build

Regina city council will decide whether or not it will allow construction of a controversial apartment complex in the Douglas Park neighborhood to move forward at a special meeting scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

The proposed five storey 90 unit apartment, that would also contain a daycare, would be located at 535 Douglas Avenue East.

It’s been recommended to council that they pass the submission that would allow construction to begin.

City council will have five recommendations to review at Tuesday’s meeting.

The first recommendation to council is that it approves an application to amend a city zoning bylaw from an “institutional zone” to a “residential low-rise zone,” according to the special meeting’s agenda.

Other recommendations include authorizing the “development officer” to issue a development notice of approval once the building’s developer makes a payment of “any applicable fees or charges and enters into a development agreement if one is required.” As well as instructing the city’s solicitor to prepare new bylaw amendments that would allow the recommendations to become valid.

'Too big'

Many residents of Douglas Park have been opposed to the potential project from the get go.

“We’re building structures that are too big for our communities,” area resident Jean-Paul Beaurivage said in May after Regina’s City Planning Commission announced it was in favour of the build.

“Development, yes, but let’s do things that are reasonable and appropriate.”

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“Walk to the fifth floor and look out – that’s going to be 30 feet from my wall,” Michael Wild said, who lives next door to the property where the building could one day stand.

According to a planning commission report, more than 200 residents voiced their disapproval of the proposed apartment build.

The proposed apartment was submitted by The Winchester Group (TWG). The director and founder of the construction firm, Joshua Bresciani, is the son of Coun. Lori Bresciani.

On its website TWG says its objective has always been to, “transform neighbourhoods into thriving communities.”

-- With files from Donovan Maess.