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With construction resuming on Dewdney Avenue on Monday, Bushwakker Brewpub’s Grant Frew is feeling a combination of excitement and concern.
The bar and marketing manager thinks the Dewdney Avenue Corridor Revitalization Project will be a “tremendous” boon for Regina tourism.
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“It is going to be an excellent link to combine the modernism of downtown Regina with the historic architecture of the Regina Warehouse District,” Frew said.
The project will see Dewdney Avenue closed from Albert to Lorne streets and from Scarth to Broad streets for two to three months.
Improvements include a new road flanked by wider sidewalks, along with lighting improvements, a tree canopy, multi-purpose outdoor spaces and new landscaping, the City of Regina said.
Bushwakker Brewpub’s bar and marketing manager Grant Frew holds an artistic rendering of what the completed Dewdney revitalization project will look like. (Daniel Reech/980 CJME)
However, Frew said the difficult part will be ensuring business stays strong throughout construction.
Frew said construction work in 2024 led to customers assuming that Bushwakker was closed due to not being accessible from Dewdney Ave.
Frew said it was “absolutely critical” for the public to be informed that businesses in the area are still open.
“I think a key thing is just having some visible signage directing people of the alternate routes to get to the area. Having that in place right off the bat as soon as construction starts, I think that is absolutely paramount,” he said.
Frew said he wanted to see the City of Regina play a role in informing people that businesses on Dewdney are still open and accessible by traveling south on Eighth Avenue.
Some businesses on Dewdney said they would like to see better parking provisions during the revitalization project. (Daniel Reech/980 CJME)
Mayor promises to support businesses
Mayor Chad Bachynski acknowledged the concerns of business owners in the area and said the city will play an active role in informing the public.
“We are absolutely in conversations to basically take lessons learned from last year and figure out a way that we can support those businesses on Dewdney to make sure people know they are open for business,” Bachynski said.
The city said in a news release this week that walkways along the north side of Dewdney Avenue and free parking in the Yards neighbourhood site accessed via Scarth Street would be available.
Road closures are expected to change as the work progresses, and the city said residents can check the online roads report for the latest updates.
Business finds a reason for people to deal with inconvenience
Beyond just relying on the city, Frew said his business will be proactive in getting through the next “lean” nine months.
Frew said Bushwakker is aiming to include additional parking on Cornwall Street, beautifying the rear entrance with lighting and plants, and plans on expanding event programming with more music events and a comedy night and potentially adding a summer seasonal menu.
“We really understand that we have to give people a reason to go through the inconvenience of trying to get here, although coming from Eighth Avenue (is) really not that inconvenient,” he said.
Kurt Dietrich, president of Kreate Architecture, said construction hasn’t really bothered his business all that much since a lot of the work they do is either virtual or at the various sites his employees visit.
Dietrich said he’d like to see better lighting and more parking provisions, although he said he wasn’t a big fan of creating parking lots.
“What we do see is people park on the south side of Dewdney and then they do the Frogger thing (dodging traffic) to get across the street,” he said.
“Somebody’s going to get hit. When they develop the south side, that could change.”
Dietrich said he has faith in the project’s planners and is curious to see how the project plays out.
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