Regina is ranked by the Conference Board of Canada as the fourth fastest-growing urban economy in Canada, and has the lowest office and residential vacancy rates in Canada, but the city's office developers and home builders are being given generous tax breaks to encourage speculative construction. The incentives include three-year property tax holidays for new office towers, which can amount to from $500,000 to $1 million per year, and cash incentives of up to $7,500 per new home for builders who deliver new housing in the downtown area and other selected neighbourhoods. There is also provincial and city programs that provide developer incentives to build affordable new homes, though Regina has the lowest average house prices east of the Maritimes. "It's a hangover from the NDP days," quipped one Regina realtor.
The Saskatchewan capital city did not see a single new office tower built in 20 years, despite all indicators signalling that a potash and oil boom was coming to the province. One new office building was complete last year, but the developer was given a tax holiday and the provincial government leased up nearly half the space, according to report in the upcoming February issue of Western Investor. The article "Gutless in Regina" questions why city developers do not engage in the type of speculative commercial and residential construction common in other Western Canadian cities. The report also queries why office and residential tenants are not provided with parallel discounts in taxpayer-assisted developments.
