'It's going to be tough:' Local businesses shutting their doors
'It's going to be tough:' Local businesses shutting their doors
Three local businesses in Regina announced they are closing their doors for good.
Since March 2012, The Lancaster Taphouse was a popular pub at Grasslands Crossing in Habour Landing.
Owner Tim Rogers said with small business pandemic supports running out and the debt he acquired to continue to operate during the pandemic, they are closing the doors for good on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022.
“Business still hadn’t come back, we’re only at about 70-75 per cent [of pre-pandemic revenues],” he said. “So, with the slow business and the debt obligations, there’s nothing we can accommodate for right now.”
The Lancaster prided itself on being a part of the local community, often playing Regina Pats or Rams’ games on the TVs above the bar.
“Owning a business in Regina, you get to play a role in the city,” said Rogers. “We got to focus on all the great local things happening in this city.
“Some of the most amazing nights in this place were watching Pats or Rams games. We’ll miss that for sure.”
Lancaster’s isn’t the only small business casualty in the Queen City this week.
“I hope this is a message that there is a big problem right now,” said Rogers. “It’s just how the pandemic has affected everything and it’s a little bit of a scary time right now.”
At Fat Plant Farm, business boomed during the pandemic. But inflation and changing consumer spending habits has also led to owner Kait Waugh to shut down her brick-and-mortar store after nearly seven years at the end of December.
“I thought the pandemic was going to be the hard part,” she said. “Coming out of that now and experiencing the struggles was a surprise.”
Warehouse Brewing is located in the Weston Bakery building in Regina’s Warehouse District. It was original built in 1929.
The brewery opened in 2020, after a year and a half of work on the old factory building. It offered a selection of locally brewed Warehouse brand beers.
Warehouse Brewing was a part of Regina’s “Hop Circuit” – a self guided tour of six of the city’s craft breweries.
“It’s been a ride to say the least and we are sad it’s over,” the post continued. “Thank you and farewell Regina from all of us at the Warehouse Brewing Company.”
In the goodbye post, the company encouraged Regina to continue to support the other craft breweries in the city.
“It is too late for us, but please help the other craft breweries thrive and succeed,” Warehouse said in the post.
Waugh echoed those sentiments.
“If you have the financial means to support your local shops, please do so,” she said. “It’s the quirky, passionate business owners that provide a unique experience you’re not going to find other places.”
“It’s really sad and disappointing we are losing some of those unique businesses.”
Lancaster’s was thankful for their customer’s 11 years of support.
“Everybody here was passionate about what The Lancaster is and what is was for the community,” said Rogers. “I think some of [the regulars] are taking this harder than I am.”
Rogers said he is lucky to have a second location in downtown Regina for his customers.
Recalling the final episode of the show, ‘Cheers’, and fighting back some emotion, he tried his best to not think about what would be running through his mind when he locks the door for the final time on Saturday.
“There will be a moment of shutting the lights down and walking out of here, but I’m trying not to think about that right now,” he said. “This is home. This is my baby. This is the dream. It’s going to be tough to close it down.”
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
A team of preteen Ukrainian refugees that have been scattered across Europe by war arrived Wednesday in Quebec City, where they'll get the chance to compete in a renowned hockey tournament.
Nearly a year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, community organizers say there is still work to be done to help the thousands of Ukrainian refugees looking to start a new life in Canada while coping with the hardships they've faced coming here.
After a tiny radioactive capsule went missing in the Australian outback, an expert in Canada says the likelihood of the same happening in this country is unlikely, given our strong regulations governing the handling of radioactive materials.
As Black History Month gets underway, Canada Post has unveiled a new stamp honouring Chloe Cooley, a young Black woman who was known to challenge her enslavement in the late 18th century.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
Calgary police are looking for suspects involved in an altercation that lasted for approximately an hour, spanned several communities and ended with a gun being fired.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
Hundreds of tenants at a midtown Toronto apartment building have been without heat for a week now, and many are worried with the arrival of bitter-cold temperatures.
Ottawa ranks 45th out of 62 cities across Canada and the United States in a study on downtown recovery, with activity levels at 51 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
While crews have resumed operations in an attempt to open the Rideau Canal Skateway for its 53rd season, an NCC spokesperson tells CTV News Ottawa the canal will not open in time for the first weekend of Winterlude on Friday.
B.C.'s Ministry of Health is continuing its multi-year trend of paying millions more dollars each year to private surgical centres for the delivery of public health care, CTV News has learned.
Changes to the amount of time the public gets to voice their opinion during Surrey City Council meetings has caused controversy among former councillors.
Canada's new special representative on combating Islamophobia has apologized for words that hurt Quebecers after leaders in that province called for her resignation.
Montreal police say two men are in hospital Wednesday night with stab wounds after an altercation in a home in the city's Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough.
A homicide investigation is underway on Quadra Island, B.C., after a 39-year old woman was found dead in what investigators believe was a targeted killing.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
A new 911 dispatch system in New Brunswick means that now fire departments aren’t getting dispatched to all medical calls leaving residents waiting and first responders in the dark.
More than four months after Hurricane Fiona hit Atlantic Canada, people are still dealing with damaged homes as they wait for help from insurance companies and provincial aid programs.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
A hearing is underway to determine if Udo Haan is not criminally responsible for the death of his wife Edra Haan, who was found in the aftermath of the 2018 house explosion in Kitchener, Ont.
Chief Mark Crowell made a presentation at a council meeting Wednesday justifying the proposed $214 million budget for the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS).
