REGINA -- After more than two months since Regina city council was last able to address items unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic, councillors talked a jam packed agenda on Wednesday afternoon.

The Regina Humane Society moves forward with ‘Animal Community Centre’ project

Council unanimously approved a zoning amendment and discretionary use application for the RHS’s 38,000 square foot new home.

With this approval, the organization is hoping to be in its new $20 million facility in two-and-a-half to three years. This would be located on 4900 Parliament Ave. in Regina’s Harbour Landing.

“The Regina Animal Community Centre will be consistent with new facilities built across Canada and beyond,” read a letter from Lisa Koch, the executive director of the Regina Humane Society. “While a new building is required, what it will enable in the community is significant.”

According to Koch’s letter, the centre would see traditional cages replaced with “comfortable, home-like enclosures for dogs” and “condos, complete with climbing trees for cats”.

It would also contain an education complex, a catering kitchen and garden areas for public use both during and after operating hours and offer expanded volunteer, training, and service learning opportunities.

Also on site would be two fenced and landscaped “neighbourhood sized dog parks including a ‘Pint Sized Park’ for small breed dogs” and a full-fledged veterinary clinic to support animal intake, rescue and adoption services.

Portable sign regulations

The city’s portable sign rules were modified last year. After hearing from those in the advertising industry, council voted 8-3 in favour of reducing the required lot frontage to allow for a second portable sign from 90 metres to 70 metres; and reducing the required separation distance between a portable sign and a permanent billboard from 30 metres to 10 metres.

This will now go to the May 27, 2020 meeting of council following public notice.

Cycle of controversy

Council also discussed a possible amendment to the city’s traffic bylaw related to cyclist safety, which was supposed to proceed to the cancelled March meeting of city council.

On March 4, the Community and Protective Services Committee approved a resolution to review a change that would require all cyclists of all ages to wear helmets approved by the Canadian Standards Association while riding on city streets or be subject to a $29 fine for infractions.

It’s drawn backlash from many in Regina’s cycling community and elsewhere.

“Discussion around mandatory helmets only distracts political discourse from more worthy topics, such as creating bicycle-friendly infrastructure and policy,” reads a letter from delegation Angèle Poirier, a board member with Bike Regina. “A study of 25 American city councils showed that fixation on helmet bylaws actually hampers efforts to improve bicycle safety and only exacerbates auto-centricity."

It would also see more guidelines put in place surrounding the needed distance between motorists and cyclists at different speeds and an accompanying awareness campaign for all the changes.

“This type of distraction is perfectly evident in the City of Regina, as this discourse about helmets actually began as a safe passing bylaw in fall 2019, but was somehow hijacked and turned into a helmet bylaw,” Poirier’s submission continues.

“I truly believe that if the helmet bylaw is introduced, it will discourage these parents [during COVID-19] from taking out their family for bike rides,” argues another submission.

On the other side, the Canadian Paediatric Society supports the move.

“Head injuries are among the most severe injuries sustained while bicycling, justifying the implementation of bicycle helmet legislation by many provinces.”

After a lengthy discussion, council voted against the helmet bylaw. However, council did vote to directed administration to prepare a report to be brought back to the Community and Protective Services Committee in the third quarter of 2020 with respect to requiring motorists to maintain a distance of 1.5 metres when passing a cyclist with a speed higher than 50 kilometres per hour, and one metre when passing a cyclist with a speed of 50 kilometres per hour or less.