Regina's new city council held its first meeting, approved a tax increase, and resolved a long-standing dispute with the Saskatchewan Roughriders over the rent at Mosaic Stadium.Council members unanimously approved a 1.34% mill rate increase to support a $100 million water network expansion project. In a separate vote of 9-2, councillors also agreed to a negotiated settlement regarding the Roughriders unpaid stadium rent from COVID-19-shortened seasons in 2020 and 2021..Winnipeg Hospital chops off man’s wrong leg.Under the agreement, the city will retroactively reduce the Roughriders rental obligations, with the team agreeing to pay $2.2 million of the $3.5 million originally owed.City Manager Niki Anderson characterized the resolution as a prudent financial decision. "As far as the Riders are concerned, this is as reasonable as it gets before it would move on to a court case," said Anderson."Administratively, I can absolutely see both sides. But from a legal perspective, the risk of going to court and where it could land is not a risk that I would want to take, financially.".Senior tied to chair, toes broken in Saskatchewan nursing home.Mayor Chad Bachynski was satisfied with the meeting's collaborative tone. "One of my biggest priorities was getting an operating model together and getting people to buy in, and so far, everybody has," said Bachynski."The goal is to have that regular communication and cadence with every councillor to ensure we all understand where folks are coming from.".Premier popularity shifts, Moe gains ground, Smith and Eby hold steady.The council's next meeting is scheduled for late January. Meanwhile, city administrators continue to work on developing a comprehensive operational framework for the new municipal government.The meeting also discussed potential future policy discussions, including preliminary considerations about municipal responses to federal political changes.
