City Offers Food Bank $100,000, $1 Annual Lease, Pending Approval

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The CEO of Regina Food Bank (RFB) has mixed feelings after the city’s executive board approved some of the requests the organization made in its efforts to expand downtown.

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A food bank wants to rent a city-owned property behind the former government liquor store at 1881 Broad Street. The food bank was leasing land at 1720 12th Avenue for $1 a year and asking for temporary financing of $200,000.

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At a meeting of the Executive Committee at City Hall on Wednesday, the administration recommended approving the lease agreement but did not approve the $200,000 request. We recommended offering in-kind services to paving leased parcels estimated at a maximum approved amount of $100,000. A final approval vote is required at the next City Council meeting.

“We appreciate the City Council’s support,” John Bailey said Wednesday. I would lie. But overall, I think it’s a good day for food banks and a good day for this project moving forward,” Bailey added.

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RFB is looking to expand by opening a downtown community food hub to complement its Winnipeg Street location. An RFB representative told the committee that she would essentially double her access to the program.

Bailey said the $200,000 request was meant to cover the cost of renovating the former government liquor store, which is just over 7,000 square feet. The plan for this place is to have a model of a grocery store. This allows clients to choose the foods they like rather than the traditional build-out food basket option.

“What we are trying to do is we need to go out and change our approach to seeking support from companies and businesses that call Regina home.Of course, the people of the city of Regina make up for the difference Rely on me for a little more,” Bailey said.

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“If that succeeds, the plan will go ahead. If not, we’ll have to see what changes are made to programming design and execution if we can’t currently make up for that difference.” He added that the process is still in its early stages.

Congressional Amendment. Andrew Stevens (District 3) lost, even though he offered the full $200,000 in addition to the pavement. Providing full requirements and paving was listed as a possible alternative by city officials in a report prepared for the conference.

Mayor Sandra Master and Count. Bob Hawkins said he did not support it, calling it the Walk On motion (Stevens disputed this, noting in his report that the administration had options).

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The $100,000 provided to food banks will be deducted from the Community Investment Grant Program. If the council approves, the remaining balance will be $130,000. The parcel pavement costs can be less than $100,000, but are paid for by the city’s land development reserves.

crmartell@postmedia.com

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