Province asks City of Regina for $23M to help fund bypass project
Council gave administration the go ahead to finalize how much it will chip in
The City of Regina is in the midst of negotiations with the province over how much money it will chip in for the bypass project.
The project includes three interchanges — and the province wants money for two of them — one at 9th Avenue N. and the other at Hill Avenue because of the direct benefit of the projects to Regina.
If the city agrees to the province's terms they will chip in more than $23 million, or 35 per cent of the cost.
At council on Monday night, Mayor Michael Fougere said if the province could front the cash, the city may be willing to pay it back over an extended period of time.
"Frankly, we'd prefer not to pay anything at all," he said. "But I also think that in the real world, how things actually happen, (the city) does benefit from those bypasses and those interchanges therefore we're going to make a contribution for it."
On Monday night, council gave Administration the green light to finalize negotiations for their share of the project.
The RM of Sherwood has also been asked to chip in close to $10 million for the project.