City of Regina applying for disaster relief for residents following flooding
City of Regina applying for disaster relief for residents following flooding
REGINA -
The City of Regina is hoping to help out some of its residents that didn’t have insurance during the rain storm on June 11 by applying for relief through the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program.
The provincial program administers funds for assistance as a result of a substantial damage to uninsurable, essential property caused by specific natural disasters.
“After the occurrences, the city was met with service requests which identified several reported cases of basement flooding and property damage,” said city manager Chris Holden.
The city estimates the storm will cost the average individual over $5,000 and the average community over $25,000.
Council successfully applied for assistance in 2014 and 2015. If approved this time, it would also be eligible to apply for help for its own properties.
“We become the middleman to make sure that people can access the application. And of course this resolution makes applicants eligible for consideration under the program,” said Holden.
According to a report, at least 140 to 200 homes have requested assistance for damage since the storm. The damage is estimated to cost $250,000 in total. Service Regina said it received more than 300 service requests during the storm.
“When something like that happens, overwhelms the system, we're looking to assist residents wherever we can, with programs that are available to them,” said Masters.
Masters said if approved, administration will post the application process online for any residents that need it. It could take weeks to months for councils request to go through.
Administration said an engineering group is following up with municipal properties to assess any possible damage. Work is also being done to find ways to keep drivers from using flooded underpasses during a storm.
When it comes to wastewater, administration said there is also significant work planned to reduce sewer backups in the city.
Masters said the city won't have an exact number of how many homes were impacted or the cost related until a later time.
CANADA CENTRE RECREATION HUB UPGRADES APPROVED
City council unanimously approved up to $2 million from the Recreation & Culture Capital Plan for the Regina Exhibition Association Limited to develop the Canada Centre Building.
The improvement will include a multi-use recreation and sport-court facility. A request has been made to install pickle ball courts and an indoor skate park.
According to administration, the Canada Centre Building requires about $2.8 million in renovations. The city will use the capital money to cover $150,000 associated with the lease of a proposed skate park. It would also pay for washrooms, lobby space, curtains to divide the spaces and multi-court flooring.
REAL is estimating that the investments required to implement the recreation hub are $2.8 million.
AIRPORT EXEMPTION AMENDMENT
The Regina Airport Authority received an extension to the original tax exemption agreement it has with the City of Regina.
The new agreement will also require the service starts by December 31, 2023.
The city will also apply to the Government of Saskatchewan for any exemption of the education portion of the taxes that is $25,000 or greater.
VARSITY PARK UPGRADE APPROVED
Regina city council unanimously approved upgrades for Varsity Park during its meeting on Wednesday.
Council approved a donation of $140,000 for the construction of a basketball court, winter water service, trees and site furnishings in Varsity Park.
The money would be provided by the Arcola East Community Association (AECA), in partnership with the Hawrylak School Community Council (HSCC) and East Zone Board (EZB). Administration recommends council approve the donation.
Resident of Varsity Park, Elizabeth Lockert, spoke in favour of the upgrades, but against a new basketball court. She collected a petition with signatures opposing the construction of a new basketball court.
According to Lockert, 14 of the 30 homeowners she knows of who received a letter oppose a new basketball court. Lockert fears the upgrade will add noise to the area. She lives on Philip Road and claims the nearby park already causes too much noise.
Councillor Bob Hawkins said there is a need for recreation in the area, and any noise concerns can be handled by the bylaw.
According to the city, 83 per cent of 288 respondents it polled indicated that they would use the park more often if the planned upgrades occurred.
U.S. President Joe Biden is using his State of the Union address Tuesday night to call on Republicans to work with him to 'finish the job' of rebuilding the economy and uniting the nation as he seeks to overcome pessimism in the country and navigate political divisions in Washington.
After raising interest rates eight consecutive times, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem told an audience in Quebec City on Tuesday that inflation is showing signs of 'turning the corner' and that the coming year 'will be different.'
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
While much of internet is still buzzing about the wonders of ChatGPT, a Toronto-based technology and visual effects company is making its own splash in Hollywood using artificial intelligence.
As negotiations continue between premiers and the federal government, former Quebec premier Jean Charest is criticizing the feds' string-attached approach to health-care funding, stating that Ottawa should not be in the business of operating health-care systems.
We may soon be able to detect humidity levels, respiratory changes or a too-wet diaper, all with a new type of sensor — one created by drawing with a pencil on specially-treated paper.
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.
A 24-year-old man now linked to an unusual string of crimes that kept the Dallas Zoo on the lookout for missing animals told police that after he swiped two monkeys from their enclosure, he took them onto the city's light rail system to make his getaway, court records show.
Balloons and drones were among 768 reported UFO sightings in Canada last year, according to Winnipeg-based researcher Chris Rutkowski, who also found that eight per cent of all cases remained unexplained.
Robyn Silvernagle will be making her third appearance at the national Scotties Tournament of Hearts next week in Kamloops, BC, just weeks after her team was put together.
Residents at a downtown Saskatoon apartment complex are speaking out about what they say are unreasonable rent increases and a lack of attention to building repairs.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith expressed her concerns with the federal government's proposed 'just transition' legislation directly to the prime minister on Tuesday, saying she hopes the two can find some common ground.
If Alberta accepts Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s federal health proposal, it would see, on average, $2.5 billion over the next 10 years, in line with population growth.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith expressed her concerns with the federal government's proposed 'just transition' legislation directly to the prime minister on Tuesday, saying she hopes the two can find some common ground.
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Meaghan Maloney of London, Ont. said she was driving on her way to work, along Highway 401, in her 2023 Nissan Rogue when the sunroof shattered without warning.
There is a new sign of financial issues with an Ottawa construction company that suddenly closed, leaving customers with unfinished projects unable to recoup their losses.
While some premiers are calling the health-care offer presented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Tuesday "disappointing," B.C.'s David Eby stopped short of that characterization.
At 2:18 Run in Victoria, Phil Nicholls is wondering what an economic slowdown might mean for his small business specializing in high-end sneakers and clothing.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Quebec interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay says that in wanting to close Roxham Road to prevent irregular entry of asylum seekers into Quebec, the Parti Québécois and its leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon are behaving like Donald Trump.
A Victoria man says a series of devastating earthquakes in Turkiye and Syria have left him feeling nearly paralyzed, as the death toll from the quakes rises above 6,200 people.
A former medical student who claims he fatally shot a fellow student in self-defence during a drug deal in Halifax denied Tuesday he planned to kill the man and steal the marijuana he was carrying.
Retirement is bittersweet for a Nova Scotia doctor who says she feels like she has abandoned the 2,000 patients she has been caring for because she was not able to find a doctor to replace her.
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.
A dog in desperate need of care was found abandoned during frigid temperatures over the weekend and is just one of the many cases of abandoned dogs, according to Animal Control in that area.
Roundabouts are under the microscope in Waterloo region as regional councillors are reviewing the safety of the road design following a pair of serious collisions involving pedestrians.
