Lifestyle, affordability and opportunities for growth factor into Regina’s appeal
Regina boasts a mix of powerful economic opportunities and a quality of life and affordability that are hard to find in other big urban centres. supplied
Canada’s cities have a lot to brag about, and in recent years provinces such as Alberta and Nova Scotia have tooted their horns to lure new residents and businesses to their communities.
But there’s one Canadian city that’s been transforming quietly into a global powerhouse for homegrown and foreign businesses – while remaining an affordable and neighbourly place to live.
“Regina really is Canada’s best-kept secret,” says Chris Lane, CEO of Economic Development Regina. “What makes this place special is the combination of lifestyle, affordability and incredible opportunities for growth. Whether you’re a person looking to build a career or a company looking to build and expand your business, Regina is big enough to propel you to success on a large and even global scale but small enough so that you don’t get lost in the crowd.”
Entrepreneurs and industry certainly thrive in the Saskatchewan capital city of Regina. Home to a broad range of companies, Regina is making a global impact in key sectors that include agriculture and food, renewable energy and advanced manufacturing.
Regina is surrounded by 80 million acres of cropland, accounting for more than 40 per cent of cultivated land in the country. But the region’s agribusiness sector goes beyond farming operations to include innovators in renewable and biomass fuels – from sustainable, homegrown sources such as canola – sustainable, upcycled fertilizer and automated agriculture technology.
“Regina has built a platform for entrepreneurship and innovation for our key sectors that doesn’t exist anywhere else in Canada,” says Mr. Lane. “We’ve got a vibrant, well-supported and well-funded incubator and accelerator system for startups, and we’ve got world-class technologies to support those startups as well as established businesses.”
This supportive environment for entrepreneurs and innovators, combined with a young and educated workforce, has made Regina an attractive destination for businesses.
They’ve arrived en masse and are injecting huge amounts of capital – and ambitious energy – into the city.
A number of canola crushing facilities are setting up shop in and around Regina, creating the single largest market for Canadian canola seed producers. Across the border in South Dakota, agtech company Raven Industries Inc. decided three years ago it would build its Canadian headquarters in the greater Regina area as part of a five-year strategy to expand manufacturing of its autonomous farming solutions.
“The Regina advantage for businesses is twofold: The first part of it is our aggressive strategy around accelerating permitting times for things like building infrastructures,” says Mr. Lane. “The second part is our well-developed, pathfinding system for helping businesses arrive and set up here – whether that’s through Economic Development Regina, through city administration or through the provincial government. There’s commonality of purpose and strategy between all levels of government in Saskatchewan and in Regina in particular, and the services that we’ve built have been designed to accelerate business location and growth.”
“Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
We saw this two-storey house on four acres
of land with about 5,000 square feet of living space and it was still quite new – just
two or three years old.
We paid about $650,000 for it. ”
Regina is also drawing individuals and families looking for a better place to live and work
“I didn’t really know a lot about Regina before we moved here, although we used to drive through it when we travelled as a family,” says Haden Johnson, a sales consultant with Goodon Industries Ltd., a Manitoba-based post-frame construction company with operations in Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the United States. “But coming here has been a very good move for me and my family.”
Four years ago, when his employer offered him a role that would require relocating to the Regina area, Mr. Johnson – who grew up in a rural Manitoba community with about 3,000 residents – wondered if he and his family would take easily to life in an urban centre.
“It didn’t take us long to feel right at home,” he says. “Living in Regina is like being part of a close-knit community. It’s not overwhelmingly big – it’s easy to get around, with groceries, banks and schools all close to each other – and you get to know people.”
Affordability was a major factor in making the decision to move to Regina, says Mr. Johnson’s wife, Victoria. With four young children and one income – Ms. Johnson is a stay-at-home mom – finding a home that would not break their budget was a top priority.
They didn’t have to look too far or too long.
“We saw this two-storey house on four acres of land with about 5,000 square feet of living space and it was still quite new – just two or three years old,” recalls Ms. Johnson. “We paid about $650,000 for it.”
A similar house would cost significantly more in other Canadian cities. Mr. Lane at Economic Development Regina says the average house price in Regina is $312,000 – less than half the national average of $668,000 and a mere fraction of what real estate typically fetches in high-priced markets like Toronto and Vancouver.
Along with comparatively cheaper housing, Regina residents enjoy a cost of living that’s among the lowest in the country, adds Mr. Lane.
“... data from Statistics Canada show that the median household income in Regina is top three in the country among comparable cities. So when you combine that with the low cost of housing and low cost of living, what you get are households whose discretionary or disposable incomes are higher than in almost any other urban centre in the country. ”
“On top of that, data from Statistics Canada show that the median household income in Regina is top three in the country among comparable cities,” he says. “So when you combine that with the low cost of housing and low cost of living, what you get are households whose discretionary or disposable incomes are higher than in almost any other urban centre in the country.”
Jobs are plentiful in Regina, says Mr. Lane. On any given day, the city has more than 4,000 job openings across a wide spectrum of roles and levels – from skilled trades and journeypersons to professionals in fields like engineering, financial services and technology.
Career tracks tend to be fast-moving, with high performers advancing quickly up the ranks. Of particular note are the numerous opportunities for Indigenous employment and engagement through such institutions as the First Nations University of Canada – a post-secondary school that specializes in Indigenous knowledge – and through organizations focused on training and hiring Indigenous workers.
It’s no surprise that in recent years, Regina has seen an influx of Canadians migrating from other provinces and territories.
“We see people coming to Regina looking for a better life,” says Mr. Lane. “But I think that when people come here, they learn quickly that it’s not just a bit better to live in Regina – it’s life-changingly better.”
Life has definitely changed for the better for the Johnsons. The kids, for one, love their school – the small classroom sizes and variety of sports activities are a big plus, says Ms. Johnson. In the summer months, the family often ventures out to the villages along the nearby lake systems, and on “date nights,” the couple likes to try the city’s many restaurants.
“I really love it here – it’s a progressive place,” says Ms. Johnson. “It’s growing, and it’s got something for everyone.”
Homegrown advantages
As a place for growers of all types, Regina’s “homegrown” ingenuity has made the city a global powerhouse in agtech and food production – the heartbeat of North America’s new prairie economy. It’s also a thriving centre for business, social and creative entrepreneurs.
Regina’s population – one of the fastest growing in Canada – is young, diverse, ambitious and steeped in prairieauthenticity. In Regina, people don’t boast. They just get on with things in their own quietly audacious way.
What Regina grows best are people: passionate doers, ready to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges, together. Whether they have been here a day, a decade or their entire lives, they can attest to the power of this dynamic city’s experiences and energy.
By the numbers:
$312,000 average home price (single family home)
$1,080 average monthly rent (1 bedroom)
$90,000 median household income
4.5% unemployment rate
17 minutes average commute
38 years median age (3rd lowest in Canada)
More information at: economicdevelopmentregina.com
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