Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski focusing on construction, completing projects in new year

Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski says he’s learned a lot in his first year on the job and hopes to bring those lessons into the new year.

Bachynski said that in the year ahead, he wants to focus on completing projects, including construction, as a way to invest in the city.

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980 CJME’s Abby Zieverink sat down with the mayor to find out more about his goals for 2026.

The following transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

980 CJME: What was the biggest thing you learned in the first full year as mayor that you’re going to take into next year?

CHAD BACHYNSKI: I think the thing that I’ll take into next year that has happened is a lot of the connections and the relationships that I’ve built with folks. Maybe something that people don’t think about, but you come into it new it’s like any new job. Before you can really dive into the work, not only do you have to understand the organization, the service you’re delivering, but you really have to know who’s who in the organization, because we have so much connection with other levels of government and other stakeholders within the community. I tried to put as much time as possible having meetings with folks, everyone from business organizations, developers, community organizations and everywhere in between, just to build those connections. So when items come up, or I start to get feedback, or as I’m working through our strategic plan with administration, I’m making sure I have those connections as we put items forward through council and make those decisions that are reflective of all our community,

Looking ahead, what are you hoping to achieve in 2026 for the city?

BACHYNSKI: I think 2025 was a big year of learning, which took the majority of time, and we talked about some of the unexpected challenges. Looking forward, early in the new year I do want to shift my focus to some of the things that I had quite heavily campaigned on, specifically around construction. I do want to look at likely bringing something forward in collaboration with administration and look for support from my colleagues to look at the way we do construction, both from an execution and a timing perspective.

You’re hoping to have the construction season look a little bit different next year?

BACHYNSKI: As early as next year, but my primary goal is to make sure that we do we ask some questions about how we do construction versus other municipalities. And maybe construction can look a little different with the goal of balancing. Yes, we need to get work done efficiently and effectively, but also making sure we consider the impacts to businesses and traffic and otherwise at the same time. I want to make sure we have a good look at that and see if maybe there’s some adjustments that we can make as a city to make life even better for our residents.

And what are you hoping to have changed by the end of 2026?

BACHYNSKI: Oh, good question. Well, the look of construction, maybe, is one of them. I think we’ve got some acting positions filled. I think just in the interest of continuing down the path of looking for more stability. I’d like to get our city manager position solidified through 2026 and just make sure we’re in a position where we have some stability in the organization going forward and really be ready to tackle all the challenges and decisions in front of us.

Given how big the tax increase was this year for just maintaining services, are we going to see any more belt tightening in the new year?

BACHYNSKI: There is ongoing, continuous improvement, which is not this is not abnormal for any organization. Even where I’ve come from, there was always an element of expected, continuous improvement to find ways to be more effective, and that will continue on for sure. So I think the real question is, “Is that service optimization?” And I think there is absolutely going to be a focus on that.

One thing that I’m very interested in, that I’ve heard loud and clear, is that as other municipalities have grown, they’ve actually leveraged public-private partnerships, or had public or had private industry come in to maybe take on the operation of some of the facilities that cities have run. For example, I think Saskatoon has a lot of private entities that run a lot of their ice rinks. We have on our list for the budget this year the Kinsmen and Optimist (rinks), and that’s already come up in in discussions and budgets. Where is there an opportunity and it sounds like there may be interest in in private industry coming and looking at that as an option for them to run and maybe take that off the city’s books? And so I’m absolutely interested in innovative ways that maybe the city can offset some of those. That way the city can bring down costs and expenses but still maintain the services that residents need, especially for kids wanting to play hockey.

And what about major projects or events in the new year? How important are those for the city and how high on the priority list are those for you as mayor?

BACHYNSKI: Extremely high. I’ve been very, very vocal about my push to make sure that we do not hold back on completing infrastructure, completing projects. It’s imperative that we continue on the path of actually executing those projects. We don’t want to fall behind any further than we are. My hope is that by doing that, and then looking for funding through some of the advocacy that myself and the province have done to the federal government, if we can get a new investment model it’ll help us catch up even quicker, without putting it on the backs of our taxpayers in Regina.

What’s your New Year’s resolution, for you and the city?

BACHYNSKI: That’s a great question. My New Year’s resolution for me and the city is let’s look at the positives of our city. We have so many great people, so many great organizations. We have challenges, like any other municipality. If we invest in Regina, we will see a return and we will be able to show that Regina is a great place to live, work and play.