Builders taking advantage of Regina infill housing incentives

The City of Regina’s housing incentive program helped turn 12 vacant lots into available units.

The program supports infill housing development, where builders develop in established neighbourhoods on underused lots instead of expanding outward.

The city aims for 40 per cent of new developments to occur in established neighbourhoods over the next 25 years, according to the OPC Growth Plan.

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One example is Goldman Group of Companies, which developed an infill apartment building in the Heritage neighbourhood with help from the incentive program.

College Manor was developed in the Heritage neighbourhood in Regina. (Gillian Massie/980 CJME)

“We’ve done infill development for decades, and we look forward to doing more of it,” said Robert Goldman, the company’s president.

“Unfortunately, with where construction costs are, things are challenging at this time. Again, these city programs are very important in bringing these projects to fruition.”

Goldman said construction costs have nearly doubled in the past five years.

The College Manor apartment building has 27 suites: 20 offered at market rates and seven affordable housing units.

The city said the housing incentive program helped support 360 new affordable housing units in 2025.

It added that 75 per cent of those units were developed in core established neighbourhoods like City Centre, Heritage and North Central.

MayBell Developments was built in the Lilium Village in Regina. (Gillian Massie/980 CJME)

Goldman said the seven affordable housing units were absorbed into the market almost immediately, which signalled high demand.

“Those affordable units are very difficult to bring on the market and wouldn’t have been possible in this project,” he said.

Michelle Coghill, the executive director of MayBell Developments, said the incentive program helped create a 12-unit housing community in the Lilium Village neighbourhood.

“It made sense for us to start with an infill project here, being able to take an unused parking lot and turn it into a valuable resource for single-mother families in our community,” she said.

Coghill said the funding was crucial for a relatively young organization such as MayBell.

Bill Neher, the City of Regina’s manager of housing, said infill developments help make neighbourhoods more accessible to foot traffic and expand their commercial uses.

“It provides more housing options for seniors who are looking to downsize and stay in the neighbourhood they love,” he said. “For young adults who are looking for their first home, families with changing needs, and professionals who want to live closer to work.”

The incentive program offers a per-unit capital grant and a five-year 100 per cent tax exemption for new and affordable rental and ownership homes and units.