Regina Construction III

[Treesplease]

Originally Posted by BrutallyDishonest2

Those Probe Brothers really make good looking buildings!

Holy cow....is that the building that sat unfinished for years with the tyvek weathered off of it? I didn't realize that they actually finished it. I suppose kudos are in order for actually finishing what was a delapitated heap.

[UPP]

Originally Posted by jigglysquishy

I'm not sure why you hate Saskatoon so much. We're all from Saskatchewan and when one city does well it benefits the other. Both cities do stuff right and both do A LOT wrong. It's essential that we learn from each other's mistakes and allow both cities to become better.

Saskatoon is certainly more urban. Regina has no equivalent to Broadway as Cathedral has at best a quarter the stores and restaurants. We should be pushing to have Cathedral replicate Broadway. Saskatoon has a far far better transit system and is pushing through BRT. There is no equivalent to Riversdale in Regina and their downtown has twice the nightlife.


Regina can and should learn from Saskatoon. Likewise, Saskatoon should learn from Regina when it comes to office space policy, high rises, and the Dewdney strip.

This is such a Saskatoon mantra... except when there's major government spending in Regina.

As for Saskatoon being more 'urban', I'd say it's a push. There may be more downtown shops and clubs, but there's also more of a kitschy, trying-too-hard feel (the Cave, the Granary, the Station, that silly double decker) that comes from a city that owes much of it's growth to people moving to the 'big city' from small surrounding towns like Humboldt and Biggar.

I wouldn't even put Saskatoon in the same conversation with Winnipeg.

It's definitely bigger and feels bigger, but not more urban.

[thefourthtower]

Originally Posted by UPP

This is such a Saskatoon mantra... except when there's major government spending in Regina.

As for Saskatoon being more 'urban', I'd say it's a push. There may be more downtown shops and clubs, but there's also more of a kitschy, trying-too-hard feel (the Cave, the Granary, the Station, that silly double decker) that comes from a city that owes much of it's growth to people moving to the 'big city' from small surrounding towns like Humboldt and Biggar.

I wouldn't even put Saskatoon in the same conversation with Winnipeg.

It's definitely bigger and feels bigger, but not more urban.

Regina feels way bigger because of its downtown the city has twice as much office space downtown

[Echoes]

^ Re: the "Saskatoon mantra" thing - I'm positive that jigglysquishy is a Reginan that's moved to Saskatoon, so it's not like you're addressing a born-and-raised Saskatonian who might hold that view. He posts regularly in both city threads anyway, so he at least has a close connection to both places. He certainly can't be accused of being entirely biased towards one city over the other.

Also, I've read the posts from the last page or so, and not one Saskatonian has weighed in, only Regina posters weighing in on how one place is like or unlike the other - and that's OK! - conversations like this are allowed to happen and this is your city's thread after all! But I just wanted to point that out before anyone declared that a city vs. city pissing match had been started antagonistically.

And, hey, I had dinner with a friend from Biggar just last week, and his taste in food, wine, beer, etc. are much too refined to ever have him set foot in any of those kitschy places!

[W.W. La Chance]

I was born and raised in Regina but have lived in Saskatoon for many years. I get to go back to Regina every once in a while, and I would have to agree that Saskatoon feels a bit more "urban". It may not appear as urban at first glance, but there is certainly a lot more going on in the food/arts/culture/shopping scenes. Both 20th and Broadway feel more "urban" to me than 13th does. This might be due to the volume of shops/bars/restaurants, and that both of those Saskatoon streets have historic theatres helping with foot traffic. As for downtown Saskatoon, 2nd, 21st, and even 3rd to some degree feel more urban than much of what downtown Regina has to offer (particularly in the evening). It's not a huge difference, just a slight difference. I don't find either city to be remarkably "urban" to begin with. Regina is certainly seeing some positive changes and that's exciting. I can't wait to see what downtown/13th/11th will look like in 5 years. 5 years has done a lot for Saskatoon's urbanity, with 20th being the obvious change.

[scotty c]

I grew up in Regina and moved to Saskatoon about 7 years ago. So my thoughts on Regina's downtown are a bit dated as the pub/restaurant scene has increased greatly since then.

The difference between the two I've always found is night vs day. Regina is much more big city feeling during the day time with the office towers and the government workers it feels much more corporate. Saskatoon has some of that as well but it's not nearly as concentrated. When the work day finishes that's when things flip (or at least they used to). In Saskatoon there are lots of restaurants, pubs and the theatre, on a weekend downtown in the evening can feel busier than it does during a week day. Regina on the other hand seemed deserted. There were nights we'd go to the Globe and it was like we were the only ones in the downtown core.

[Dan0myte]

In high school I had a teacher that had just moved to Regina from Toronto. One day in class the topic of Saskatoon vs. Regina came up and she ended it by saying "I don't get what all the fuss is about. I've never seen two more similar cities in my life."

As much as Saskatoon people like to boast their size and belittle Regina, and as much as Regina people like to promote their city's progress and better downtown, we're just two small insignificant prairie towns in the big scheme of things. I'm just glad we're both growing and both maturing into proper urban cities and shaking off the mass exodus to Alberta and doom and gloom of 15 years ago.

[jigglysquishy]

Any word on the lakeshore redevelopment? It was approved 14 months ago and with Harvard being behind it I would have expected movement by now.

[HomeInMyShoes]

^Harvard is pretty risk-averse when it comes to development. I think we won't see anything on the Lakeshore development until we see a reasonably healthy rebound in the economy. Probably at least two years away now I would think.

@Dan0myte: completely agree. Regina and Saskatoon are two small cities even though they are top-20 cities in Canada. They might be, but they are still small cities. Top-20 in the United States means almost 3,000,000 people in the metro. We are small cities and People mock me when I call Regina a big hick town, but it is. Downtown has made great strides in many respects. It still needs to replace some of the lost street-level retail we had in previous decades. But we're small. Regina is about 150,000 more people away from a larger jump in urban-ness in most areas. This is provided we don't get 150,000 more people just in new subdivisions and Emerald Park. Get a reasonably healthy 15k added within the 4th avenue/Elphinstone and 25th avenue/Winnipeg box and we'd definitely feel that the urbanness has kicked it up a notch. Saskatoon is much closer to making that jump, but they have their own issues with a more dispersed workforce. But this is all pie-in-the-sky stuff.

13th Avenue needs to intensify a bit, but not much. There's a couple of blocks that need to be redone and it would be pretty special. Would love to see a mid-rise for where La Cucaracha is and get them a permanent home in the CRUs below the residential. That section between Albert and the Safeway has some great stuff but a few gaps that if filled it would be pretty special.

I'd also love to see the proposal for Elphinstone and 13th go forward.

[StealthGirl]

Piece in the LP today about parking space minimums and that it possibly should be parking maximums.

http://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ur...ity-of-regina-to-review-parking-minimums

There has to be serious improvement to transit to make this shift even a consideration.

[Festivus]

Originally Posted by StealthGirl

Piece in the LP today about parking space minimums and that it possibly should be parking maximums.

http://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ur...ity-of-regina-to-review-parking-minimums

There has to be serious improvement to transit to make this shift even a consideration.

Completely unrealistic unless public transit sees a huge increase in funding in Regina. We'd need many more routes, express routes, and increased buses on those routes for it to work. I can drive from Rochdale to S. Albert in 15-20 minutes, so why would I take the bus on a 50-60 minute trip with a transfer? Cut it to the same time and I'll start taking it.

[jigglysquishy]

Originally Posted by StealthGirl

Piece in the LP today about parking space minimums and that it possibly should be parking maximums.

http://leaderpost.com/news/local-news/ur...ity-of-regina-to-review-parking-minimums

There has to be serious improvement to transit to make this shift even a consideration.

100% for this. We're essentially subsidizing parking downtown.

We certainly need better transit. It's probably the single biggest need in Regina. At the very least it'll encourage people to carpool.

[Festivus]

Originally Posted by jigglysquishy

100% for this. We're essentially subsidizing parking downtown.

We certainly need better transit. It's probably the single biggest need in Regina. At the very least it'll encourage people to carpool.

As long as they don't limit parking for residential developments, mind you.

The biggest horror story is going to be those new apartments way out on Parliament in Harbour Landing. There is no way they will have enough spots for the residents (based on the 2-3 cars per unit average at other HL locations, it seems)...but there is also nowhere else to park within, what, 200-300m? Because of where it is built, there is no on-street parking anywhere, and there likely never will be since it will be commercial/retail going near to it (is my understanding).

[Drofmab]

Originally Posted by Festivus

Completely unrealistic unless public transit sees a huge increase in funding in Regina. We'd need many more routes, express routes, and increased buses on those routes for it to work. I can drive from Rochdale to S. Albert in 15-20 minutes, so why would I take the bus on a 50-60 minute trip with a transfer? Cut it to the same time and I'll start taking it.

Chicken or egg situation & it takes political guts to invest in transit in Regina. Especially because to truly get an effective transit system in place, we'd need to dedicate a lot more lanes to buses (at the expense of cars). Allowing buses to move quickly & efficiently is critical - if they're stuck in the same gridlock (which is rare in Regina), why wouldn't an average person drive?

And there needs to be a major cultural shift. 2-3 cars/unit in one of the Harbour Landing developments was mentioned in a subsequent post - folks living in apartments, with 2-3 cars? Wow. Says a lot about the car culture here.

Another shift that needs to occur is the bus-stigma. As I've noted before, in many cities there is zero stigma associated with riding transit (Ottawa, for example). In Regina, riding the bus absolutely has a negative stigma associated with it.

Investments should continue in transit - but anyone who thinks there will be a "bus renaissance" in Regina in the next 15 years is delusional. Simply decreasing the stigma, and improving routes would be a win, from my perspective. But from a political capital perspective, I'm not sure this would be enough for most Councillors or the Mayor (it certainly hasn't been enough Mayors/Councillors past).

[scotty c]

As weird as it sounds I think that having the University located where it is has a really profound impact on bus usage in Regina. When you are young and lack income is when taking the bus should be the most appealing. With the U of R where it is it's nearly impossible to get a good route to it unless you already live in the area (or at least it was when I attended a decade ago). So you learn from when your young that you need a car and you make the sacrifices necessary to get it and rely on the convenience. It's a lot more normal to ride the bus at the U of S because it's a lot easier to get there from the different areas of the city due to its more central location (plus the Upass). I think because of that people are much more willing to ride transit up here in Saskatoon than in Regina. It's not as well used as it could or should be but I think when BRT is implemented it will be picked up a lot quicker in Saskatoon than it would be in Regina.

[Festivus]

Originally Posted by Drofmab

Chicken or egg situation & it takes political guts to invest in transit in Regina. Especially because to truly get an effective transit system in place, we'd need to dedicate a lot more lanes to buses (at the expense of cars). Allowing buses to move quickly & efficiently is critical - if they're stuck in the same gridlock (which is rare in Regina), why wouldn't an average person drive?

And there needs to be a major cultural shift. 2-3 cars/unit in one of the Harbour Landing developments was mentioned in a subsequent post - folks living in apartments, with 2-3 cars? Wow. Says a lot about the car culture here.

Another shift that needs to occur is the bus-stigma. As I've noted before, in many cities there is zero stigma associated with riding transit (Ottawa, for example). In Regina, riding the bus absolutely has a negative stigma associated with it.

Investments should continue in transit - but anyone who thinks there will be a "bus renaissance" in Regina in the next 15 years is delusional. Simply decreasing the stigma, and improving routes would be a win, from my perspective. But from a political capital perspective, I'm not sure this would be enough for most Councillors or the Mayor (it certainly hasn't been enough Mayors/Councillors past).

Most apartment units in my building have 2-3 adults in them, usually university students or immigrant families with multiple adults. So it's reasonable for them to have multiple vehicles, especially the students.

[jigglysquishy]

Originally Posted by scotty c

As weird as it sounds I think that having the University located where it is has a really profound impact on bus usage in Regina. When you are young and lack income is when taking the bus should be the most appealing. With the U of R where it is it's nearly impossible to get a good route to it unless you already live in the area (or at least it was when I attended a decade ago). So you learn from when your young that you need a car and you make the sacrifices necessary to get it and rely on the convenience. It's a lot more normal to ride the bus at the U of S because it's a lot easier to get there from the different areas of the city due to its more central location (plus the Upass). I think because of that people are much more willing to ride transit up here in Saskatoon than in Regina. It's not as well used as it could or should be but I think when BRT is implemented it will be picked up a lot quicker in Saskatoon than it would be in Regina.

The U of S being close to downtown is a huge plus to the city. Some 85% of students commute sustainably in Saskatoon, while only ~45% of students do in Regina. Most of that difference is bus riders. Despite having some 50% more students in Saskatoon they have fewer parking spots which forces students to not drive.

Victoria East is probably the busiest corridor in the province and would benefit greatly from improved transit surface.

[StealthGirl]

Originally Posted by Festivus

Completely unrealistic unless public transit sees a huge increase in funding in Regina. We'd need many more routes, express routes, and increased buses on those routes for it to work. I can drive from Rochdale to S. Albert in 15-20 minutes, so why would I take the bus on a 50-60 minute trip with a transfer? Cut it to the same time and I'll start taking it.

Coming from East/Southeast Regina to downtown is a 45 minute trip as opposed to a 15-20 minute drive. People don't want to spend that kind of time on commute, esp if they have to add on top of the commute getting kids to and from daycare/babysitter/etc.

At the least this city would benefit from have express points. Say one on Vic East (Superstore or Vic Sq), Southland Mall, etc where you can park your vehicle and jump the express to downtown without having to do the tourist route that takes forever. You might get more people on the bus. The busiest buses I've taken in this city were the university to downtown ones.

[skthunder77]

Originally Posted by StealthGirl

Coming from East/Southeast Regina to downtown is a 45 minute trip as opposed to a 15-20 minute drive. People don't want to spend that kind of time on commute, esp if they have to add on top of the commute getting kids to and from daycare/babysitter/etc.

At the least this city would benefit from have express points. Say one on Vic East (Superstore or Vic Sq), Southland Mall, etc where you can park your vehicle and jump the express to downtown without having to do the tourist route that takes forever. You might get more people on the bus. The busiest buses I've taken in this city were the university to downtown ones.

Do you mean like the #50 Victoria Express and the #50 Albert Express? I've used the Victorian express before and it's quick.

[urbanregina]

Originally Posted by skthunder77

Do you mean like the #50 Victoria Express and the #50 Albert Express? I've used the Victorian express before and it's quick.

It's quick, but it's not frequent enough. Also it only runs until about 6pm. Personally I think that we should be having the express routes as the backbone of the system with the other routes feeding in.