Construction begins on RDBID revitalization outdoor event space

The Regina Downtown Business Improvement District has broken ground on a project geared to revitalizing the downtown.

Executive Director of the Regina Downtown Business Improvement District Judith Veresuk, stood with a shovel in hand at the former Gordon Block and Burns Hanley Building sites on Wednesday.

“Giving people who work downtown a reason to stay downtown after five o’clock,” she said. “That’s what this will accomplish.”

The Skuare will be a three-season, 11,000-square-foot interim-use outdoor space that will host food and drink units, food trucks, performance spots, and washrooms. The RDBID application to make use of the space was approved in early September.

A concept sketch of The Skuare. (Regina Downtown Business Improvement District/ Submitted)

The project is inspired by STACKT market, a shipping container park in Toronto, that engaged the city’s downtown with a lawn bowling space and pickleball courts, according to Veresuk.

While Veresuk said some of the project spin-off effects will direct more people to downtown businesses. The space will be available for private bookings.

“While it will not be the silver bullet, it will be important piece that kind of hopefully catalyzes other things that can happen downtown,” Veresuk said.

In early 2025, RDBID will open up applications for food and drink retailers to book the units.

Mayor Sandra Masters said the city is vibrant from an office perspective, but it is time to reel people into the downtown area after hours.

“We know from other cities that when people have reasons to walk, and beautiful things to enjoy on the way, that that makes a walkable city,” she said.

The project activation downtown should create safety, she said. Regina Police Service is set to launch its alternate response officer program this week.

“That ability to walk through downtown recognize shops, maybe that you didn’t know were there, is equally important in terms of discovering our downtown,” said Masters.

The project will cost $750,000 with funding from RDBID and Harvard Developments Corporation. The City of Regina previously approved a $500,00 downtown vibrancy grant to help pay for construction.

The Gordon Block burned down in September 2023 after burning for nearly two days.

The Skuare is set to open in June 2025.