Sask. NDP calls on province to reverse governance of Wascana Park

Saskatchewan NDP and official opposition leader Ryan Meili is calling on the government to overhaul the governance of Wascana Park in order to do away with the province's majority vote. 

"Wascana is the heart of Regina," he told reporters on the steps of the legislature Thursday. 

"This is a very important part of the life of this city and the whole province and we've seen the Sask. Party take a very backwards step by taking away local public control of this park."

Until last year, the park was operated by the Wascana Centre Authority. Under its control 11 members governed the park, three appointed by the university, three appointed by the City of Regina and five appointed by the province. 

In 2017 that changed and the park fell under the authority of the Provincial Capital Commission. At the time, the province said doing so would smooth operations for the park. 

The commission's board is comprised of only five members with three representative being appointed by the province and one for each the city and the University of Regina. 

Meili said the governance shakeup is a "step backwards" because it takes away both the voice of the city and university in decision making.   

He​ pointed to Regina City Council's recent vote to restrict future commercial developments in Wascana Park, a position Mayor Michael Fougere called largely "symbolic," noting that city is outnumbered by provincial votes on the commission. 

U of R welcomes discussion on restoring equal voting

In a statement to CBC, University of Regina president Vianne Timmons said she had initial questions about the transition from the Wascana Centre Authority to the PCC, but generally has been satisfied with the operations of the commission as it related to the university. 

"However, our primary concern remains that unlike in the WCA governance structure, in the Provincial Capital Commission model, the University and the City of Regina do not have equal voting representation with the Province. We would welcome a discussion on how voting equality might be restored." Timmons said in her statement. 

In a separate statement, Minister of Central Services Ken Cheveldayoff said there are no plans to change the governance model. 

NDP calls for commercial developments to stop

On Thursday, Meili also called on the province to disallow further commercial development from happening in the park. 

It's an issue that has spurred protests this summer. 

The new headquarters for Conexus Credit Union, to be located in the park, is expected to be completed in 2020. The plans for the building were approved by the former Wascana Centre Authority back in 2016 and Regina City Council agreed to donate land for the new office building the same year. 

As part of the deal, Conexus will donate $8 million to the University of Regina for upgrades to its College Avenue campus. The company will also help finance renovations to Darke Hall, which is on the edge of the park south of College Avenue. 

Closed door meetings

Brandt Industries also has plans to build a 70,000-square-foot building in Wascana. The Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), which currently has property in the park, is set to be one of Brandt's tenants.

According to a provincial spokesperson, the PCC approved that project's concept plans last September and is awaiting more detailed designs before approval. 

PCC meets behind closed doors, according to a provincial spokesperson. 

"When you've got a situation where you've got a government that's taken away power from the public and are now selling off pieces of public land  having a lack of transparency on top of that just makes that even worse," Meili said. 

In his statement, Cheveldayoff said even under the former Wascana Centre Authority board meetings were not open to the public, but the commission does publish an annual report online. 

Two staff move

Last month, there was a change in key staffing roles in the PCC and the ministry responsible for the park.

Carrie Ross, former executive director of the commission, left the role for a position in the Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport, a spokesperson confirmed, saying she pursued the new role. 

As well, Richard Murray, former deputy minister in the Ministry of Central Services, moved to the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety to assume the role of deputy minister. 

A spokesperson said Murray's move was part of housekeeping as other deputy ministers assumed new rules and "not related to a specific issue."