Queen City Improvement Bureau

It's that special time of the year when the Bureau turns its mind to things budgetary! But first! We got a visit from fellow community-media denizen, Jayne Trimble, of the Empower Women show on AccessNow TV. Then, we look at this year's delightfully passive aggressive budget powerpoint. And! Clr Rashovich asked what a 5% budget REDUCTION would look like, and it's not good. Not good at all. Music b...

City of Regina's Chief Financial Officer, Daren Anderson, found his way into the subbasement so we quizzed him about the 2026 budget and money stuff like that. If you're freaking out about the possibility of a 13.56% mill rate increase, this is not the show for you. Or maybe it is. Maybe you like to freak out over mill rates. We also talk about reserve funds. And wood! You should buy some now befo...

After a decade in the subbasement, we escape to the Artesian stage for Halloween + Anniversary show — a Hallowversary show! We are joined by zombie expert Cassie Ozog, the risen corpse of Carter Stenberg, un-councillor Andrew Stevens and city hall nerd Jacq Brasseur. This podcast is the full, unedited version of our live show and includes the Halloween costume portion which will require you using...

On this week's meeting agenda: • Aidan escaped the sub-basement and caught a showing of The Master Plan at the newly renovated Globe Theatre. • Admin has been talking for months about how they changed the city's Design Standards so that new residential roads will be wider. How did that happen? When did that happen? Why did that happen? We have the backstory on that. • Really good news from the Hou...

Council has been over achieving on at least one metric this week: number of meetings held. So, to find out if Aidan is an AI Chatbot or not, we quiz him to see if he can puzzle out some of the wacky things that have been going during all this extra meeting time. Plus, we premiere our radio documentary: Queen City Parking Cops. Thanks to parking supervisor Harwinder Singh and Jason Weitzel from Par...

The city's Manager Of Housing, Bill Neher, visits the sub basement to talk about the Finding Middle Ground Design Competition, how the Housing Accelerator Fund program is going and he also gives us an update on the North Central Community Land Trust. The Bureau also looks at council's new budget process and how the Smart Investments In A Sustainable Regina Motion went. Theme by Guidewire (aka Ryan...

Ward 3 councillor Shanon Zachidniak visits the subbasement to talk about her "Smart Investments for a Sustainable Regina" motion. Also discussed during this Very Serious Meeting: Changes to the budget process, Electrical buses!, What's up with that big borrowing meeting?, How's HAF doing? and an update on the free transit for highschool kids pilot program. Theme by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Origi...

Ward 3 councillor David Froh visits the subbasement to discuss the his successful motion to establish a Municipal Grasslands Biodiversity Reserve on a chunk of land by the Callie Curling Club. Also on the agenda: houselessness, encampment strategy, REAL and downtown revitalization. Theme by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Back from summer hiatus, the Bureau examines council discussion of the Renewable Regina update (which, spoilers, is not great). The Bureau also plays a round of "Can Council Make Aidan's Head Explode?" Theme by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Ward 5 councillor Sarah Turnbull finds her way to the subbasement to talk to us about her first eight months as a city councillor, runs us through council's decision on the Indoor Aquatic Facility. Also… she politely endures our questions about council's decision to fire city manager Niki Anderson. Theme by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Canada's nicest yootoob pundit, Steve Boots, visits the subbasement. We talk about yootoobery, Clr Bezo's proposed Very Serious Plan to put a roof over Wascana Pool and Gunn's Superman. Theme by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

“HELLS YA! GIT A BASEBALL STADIUM, REGINA!” says a new report heading to council sometime later this year. It was prepared by DCG Philanthropic and paid for by Living Sky Sports & Entertainment and by the City of Regina, and considering how many times councils-past have rejected the idea of using public funds for a baseball facility, one wonders if this’ll be the bottom of the ninth Hail Mary pass...

On this week's agenda: New housing minister has thoughts on housing prices, Buffalo Pound Water Treatment Plant update, money for Taylor Field Redevelopment, borrowing bucks for infrastructure. Music by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

This week was supposed to be slow one at city hall so this meeting was going to be about The Herculoids. But then council happened! And they had to go and give nearly $7 million as a ransom to keep the city's second Costco location notionally within our borders. Also, fluoride. Music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Crazy goings on at city hall. City manager on leave. Senior staff let go. Budget crows come home to roost. Council plans to kill a day re-litigating water fluoridation. Music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Singer/songwriter Belle Plaine and guitar operator Bryn Besse visit the subbasement to play some tunes, talk some shit. Very music rich QCIB, this one. Music much too good for the likes of this office. We got v lucky. Theme music by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Following up on last week's game of "Can Council Make Aidan's Head Explode", the Bureau does what Certain Councillors were too chicken to do: We put questions to the Good Trouble Network directly. Tiro & Kale are visiting the sub-basement to talk about the food assistance program they're bringing to the Heritage neighbourhood. Theme music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Additional music by Kimberley...

Don't you love it when council has a perfectly benign motion on their agenda that should pass quickly and be a good news story but somehow they find a way to make it gross and awful? And by "don't you love it?" I mean, "don't you hate it?" In this case, it's Clr Victoria Flores' food security motion which Clrs Bezo, Tsiklis & Rashovich brought so much of their conservative brand of yuck to. Aidan...

So… we sent our intern and CJTR’s erstwhile Prairie Naturalist, Sharrod Claerge, out to get us coffee like… years ago… (he insists his name is actually "Jared Clarke" and that he now has a “real job” but we don't believe him because that's exactly the kind of thing Sharrod would say, the jokester). Sharrod’s back - coffee-less (sigh) - to talk about "Salthaven West" and "wildlife rescue" and "cons...

Ward 6 councillor Victoria Flores visits the subbasement. She updates us on her Manufactured Homes motion and talks about the budget. Music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Jon & Kelly from the Queen City Urbanist Bookclub are back to chat about the four-day 2025 city budget process. It was… an adventure! Based off some councillors' performance, you should probably look up "Dunning Kruger Effect". It's a phrase that may come up a lot. Music by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

Ward 8 councillor Shanon Zachidniak visits the subbasement to talk about what it's like being the lone two-termer on council, the upcoming week of budget discussions, the Energy & Sustainability Framework, recycling, composting, housing and much more. Music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR, AccessNow community radio.

John Kennedy and Chris Matchett visit the subbasement to promote the Not A Birthday Fundraiser on March 13 at the Exchange — which the QCIB will be hosting, as it happens. Plus, we discuss council voting down rental housing and their repeated failure to understand how referral motions work. Chris performs a couple songs. Theme music by Ryan Hill (aka Guidewire). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR...

The Bureau gets a visit from the Jon and Kelly Lorenc from the Queen City Urbanist Bookclub. Music by Guidewire (aka Ryan Hill). Originally broadcast on 91.3FM CJTR.