Many Regina residents came to City Hall Monday to show their support for, or in most cases, opposition to the new zoning bylaw recommendations from city administration.
Just under 160 people spoke against the recommendation to not allow fitness facilities in industrial areas while preventing existing ones from expanding, as well as a recommendation to put a 30 metre barrier between permanent and portable signs.
Mayor Michael Fougere said city council was expecting a big reaction.
“I’ve been hearing about this from the day we tabled this in May,” Fougere said. “People saying they want to talk about a host of issues, the confusion of one of the communications we sent out that talked about rezoning property from R1, I think that was the first spark of ‘What is going on?’ ‘Why is this happening?’”
Fougere said the removal of fitness facilities in industrial zones recommendation was heavily advocated against by the community.
“This is part of a vibrant community, I think that the conversations, the delegations (and) their questions and their comments were very persuasive,” Fougere said. “(They said) ‘I’m not sure what the issue is we’re trying to solve here,’ they were very persuasive.”
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Fougere said he will be voting in favour of permitted use for fitness facilities in the industrial area.
“Discretionary use, for the kind of work that they do and the service they provide, could be unstable for them and they can’t plan for the future, so permitted use would be fine.”
A second special council meeting will be held Tuesday for council to vote on the proposed bylaw. The meeting starts at 4:00 PM.