Regina housing project 'unauthorized,' tenants could be evicted, city says

Some tenants in two buildings on Regina's Toronto Street could be facing eviction after a company put 11 units on the property without proper authorization, the city says.

According to the City of Regina, 2022 Toronto St. and 2024 Toronto St. are zoned to have a combined total of four units.

The houses are located in the Heritage area, a few blocks north of the Regina General Hospital.

While zoning rules state that each property can only have two living units, one building currently has six, while the other has five.

Before renovations, 2022 Toronto St. was a two-unit house, and 2024 was a single-family unit.

Construction company Egware Homes Inc. replaced them with the current buildings, according to a report by city administration.

Egware was charged under the Planning and Development Act with illegal land use with respect to both properties. A trial is scheduled for next week, the city says.

The company was also convicted of building without a permit in connection with 2024 Toronto St. It was told to get the proper permits or restore the property.

More recently, Egware has proposed turning the two developments into two four-plexes.

It applied to the city for "contract zoning," which would cover just the two properties.

The matter was on the agenda at Wednesday's planning commission meeting at City Hall.

However, administration officials are advising against the deal.

Among other things, they say there's not enough parking for eight units.

The city acknowledges that some tenants could be evicted if the contract zoning is not granted.

"If not approved by [Regina city council] and the court decision is in the city's favour, the use of property will be confirmed illegal and some tenants would be required to vacate as a result," the report says. 

Whatever the planning commission decides, city council will have final say on May 29.