Filling in the hole left by Capital Pointe is of high priority to the City of Regina.
The Saskatchewan Building and Accessibility Standard Appeal Board ruled on Tuesday that the hole on the corner of Albert Street and Victoria Avenue must be backfilled.
“We’re really pleased with the decision, we’ve felt all along it should be the case,” Mayor Michael Fougere said.
The city says the land is valued at just over $2.5 million. When purchased, it is estimated to generate more the $43,000 annual in tax revenue.
“It is a gateway to downtown and it is a prominent area and we would certainly like to see something there and not just a parking lot,” Fougere said.
However, Fougere says confidence that this saga has come to an end is low.
He said the developer, Westgate Properties, has 30 days to appeal the decision.
There are skeptics wondering whether the March 30 deadline is firm enough to force action.
“It was a different market then than it is today, the hotel, the building looked beautiful, it was a wonderful project,” John Hopkins from the Regina Chamber of Commerce said.
“But as the years have gone by more and more people have said ‘I’ll believe it when I see it’ because we’ve heard so much about it and nothing really has happened.”
If the developers do not comply by March 30, the city will perform the backfill and bill the developer.
CTV News was unable to reach Westgate Properties, so it is unknown if the developer plans to comply with the March 30 deadline.
Based on reporting by CTV’s Joey Slattery
