Cost-cutting suggestions discussed Wednesday included eliminating the pool's geothermal heating and 'building a roof' over Wascana Pool instead.
Written by Larissa Kurz Published Jul 24, 2025 in the Regina Leader-Post
Regina Diving Club members Alyssa Clairmont , left, and her sister Kelsey practices a synchronized dive at the Lawson Aquatic Centre in Regina on January 16, 2019. PHOTO BY TROY FLEECE /Regina Leader-Post
It’s likely the city will be swallowing a second major price bump for the new Indoor Aquatic Facility (IAF).
A fresh report on the project’s budget was presented to councillors at executive committee Wednesday.
The cost of the IAF, which will replace the aging Lawson Aquatic Centre, has gone up $40 million to $285.1 million, according to city staff’s latest estimates.
Executive committee voted 10-1 in favour of administration’s plan to find the funds by financing another $10 million in city debt and pulling $30 million from other recreation projects’ capital budgets. Ward 10 Coun. Clark Bezo was against it.
“It’s voting on a cost increase. You’re never going to feel good about that, but it is the best return on investment,” said Deputy Mayor and Ward 5 Coun. Sarah Turnbull after the meeting.
Final approval of the IAF’s new budget will be considered at city council’s meeting on July 30.
If approved, the additional $10 million in proposed debt will cost the average Regina taxpayer another $6.84 per year.
First big budget bump
This is the second major price hike for the IAF’s budget since it was approved in 2024.
After some contention in October, Regina’s previous city council approved an $84.4-million increase, bringing the budget up to $245.1 million from $160.7 million.
During Wednesday’s meeting, members of Regina’s swim community emphasized the need to build a new pool.
A design rendering shows a waterpark in the proposed new Indoor Aquatic Facility, which is planned to replace the Lawson Aquatic Centre in Regina.
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Ward 4 city councillor Lori Bresciani announces her campaign for the Regina municipal election at the Conexus Arts Center on Tuesday, September 17, 2024 in Regina.
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They repeated issues with the Lawson’s age and capacity, emphasizing Regina is passed over for competitive events as a result.
“Regina has not built a new pool in 35 years, and that’s why we’re here where we are now,” said Marj Walton, chair of Swim Saskatchewan and member of the city’s advisory committee for the IAF. “The population of Regina is growing but its facilities have not.”
Council considered options
City councillors spent more than five hours Wednesday looking for other options to mitigate the project’s elevated cost.
Bezo asked Tracy Moser, of the Regina Piranhas Summer Swim Club, about scrapping the indoor pool and building a roof over Wascana Pool.
“We’re a winter city and we’re not using that pool,” Bezo said. “Keeping what we have and putting a roof onto a brand new pool seems a logical choice to me.”
“Is that a serious question?” Moser asked, before answering it wouldn’t because Wascana Pool was built for leisure.
City Councillor Dan Rashovich (Ward 1) sits in chambers at Henry Baker Hall during a council meeting Hall on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 in Regina. PHOTO BY KAYLE NEIS /Regina Leader-Post
Ward 1 Coun. Dan Rashovich then put up the idea of scrapping the geothermal-heating aspect of the facility.
Current designs plan to heat the IAF with geothermal energy in an attached facility, which has its own budget of $28.5 million on top of the IAF’s projected $285.1 million.
“I’m all for being innovative,” Rashovich said. “But why not let a bigger city be innovative first?”
The idea failed in a 2-9 vote, with only Rashovich and Ward 2 Coun. George Tsiklis in favour.
‘We are not the ones experimenting’
Switching from geothermal heating would only free up an additional $9 million to use because it would mean redesigning to add natural gas boilers to the IAF, said city staff.
“Getting rid of geothermal doesn’t backfill it all, and we’d have to pay for fuel for the next 50 years,” said Ward 9 Coun. Jason Mancinelli.
“We are not the ones experimenting with this (geothermal) technology. We’re the ones lucky to have it beneath our feet.”
Eliminating geothermal would also leave a hole in the city’s strategy to achieve its net-zero emissions goal in the Energy and Sustainability Framework, staff noted.
“We’d have to analyze what other retrofits we’d have to do in order to meet those goals instead,” said chief executive officer Daren Anderson. “We’d just be delaying that cost.”
City staff said it would also require returning the federal and provincial governments’ $14.7-million share of funding from the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP)
Executive committee ultimately added directives to lobby the province on exempting the IAF from construction PST, explore the wider future potential of the geothermal facility and see a comparative before-and-after list of construction costs on the IAF at the July 30 meeting.
A design rendering shows a waterpark in the proposed new Indoor Aquatic Facility, which is planned to replace the Lawson Aquatic Centre in Regina. Postmedia
‘Market volatility’ inflates cost
Administration said “market volatility” inflated the IAF’s cost, citing anticipated labour shortages, inflation and “global supply chain disruptions.”
If approved next week, the redirected $30 million in recreation funding will mean shelving several other projects until at least 2030. That includes: two new dog parks ($1.2 million) and eight new pickleball courts ($1.4 million), turf replacement on city-owned fields ($5.6 million) and rebuild plans for other outdoor pools ($21.7 million).
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Any significant breakdowns at Massey, Buffalo Meadows or Regent pools could mean they stay closed until money is found for repairs, administration also notes in the report.
Other options to address the overage includes cutting some or all of the new facility’s planned leisure features from its design, such as the wave pool, lazy river and accessible waterslide. Those cuts would reportedly save $10 to $25 million.
Construction on the new aquatic centre is targeted to start this fall and be completed in 2029.