A growing demand for rental housing caused by Regina`s economic boom and an influx of construction workers and tradespeople means the city`s low vacancy rate could drop even lower this fall.
The vacancy rate in Regina dropped from 2.7 per cent in April 2007 to 1.4 per cent in April of this year, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation`s spring rental market report.
A recent study of the finances of Western Canadian cities points out that Regina and Saskatoon may be hampered in the future by a lack of revenue sharing from higher levels of government.
In the Canada West Foundation study, which examined the finances of six Western Canadian cities from 1990 to 2007, real per-capita revenues during the time period only increased by 5.1 per cent in Regina and 10.5 per cent in Saskatoon.
0908SASK Sask. tops nation`s international exports
Saskatchewan is sitting in the top spot in the nation for international exports, according to new figures from Statistics Canada.
In the first seven months of 2008, Saskatchewan`s international exports of goods increased by 49.5 per cent, to $17.5 billion compared with the first seven months of 2007.
The idea of Saskatchewan becoming home to a nuclear enrichment plant seemed impossible just a few months ago when Premier Brad Wall was in Washington promoting the idea.
Even though we are one of the world`s largest producers of uranium, the fact the G-8 would not allow it seemed to put the idea to rest.
City council cleared the way for construction to begin in November on the River Landing Urban Village, approving the concept plan despite concerns about accessibility to its public plaza.
The $200-million-plus development across Second Avenue from Persephone Theatre will include a hotel, residential condo tower and two office-retail buildings surrounding a plaza. Council approved the project verbally Monday, without a show of hands.
An American-based company has confirmed what Saskatonians already know: The city is one of the best places to live in Canada.
Relocate-Canada.com, an online service that assists home buyers with community information and real estate resources throughout North America, has cited Saskatoon as "a vibrant and diverse city . . . a community with that rare combination of big city amenities and small-town spirit."
0908SKTN City council urged to reject whitewater park proposal
A Saskatoon man is urging the city to reject a proposal for a whitewater park at the weir and instead demolish the structure.
Paul Van Pul, a consulting surveyor with an interest in waterways management, handed council Monday a 54-page report he wrote on the future of the South Saskatchewan River. In it, he criticizes a local group`s proposal to turn the weir`s three-metre drop into a series of channels and drops for kayakers, canoeists and tubers.
The City of Regina is considering raising the price for city parking permits, which may be causing it to lose roughly $250,000 in meter revenue every year.
The parking permits are purchased annually by various businesses and organizations, which allows their vehicles to park in available metered parking spaces for the time limit on the meters. As of Aug. 25, the city has issued 710 parking permits.
0908SASK Falling oil prices may reduce expected surplus
Finance Minister Rod Gantefoer has been warning of "wild gyrations" potentially affecting Saskatchewan`s economy practically since taking office last fall.
But the veteran Saskatchewan Party MLA isn`t getting much satisfaction as he watches oil drop over $50 from the recent highs that have filled the province`s coffers and shaken financial markets, and caused economic uncertainty across the world.
0908SASK Report paints unflattering picture of Sask. health care
REGINA -- The same day the Canadian Institute for Health Information released a report warning Canadians to be leery of health-care system rankings, a provincial health official viewed with skepticism a report that diagnoses Saskatchewan`s medical care as seriously ill.
On Tuesday, the Frontier Centre for Public Policy released a report that measured several quality indicators that combined to give each provincial health-care system a score out of 1,000 points. The indicators included patient rights and information, primary care, wait times, outcomes and the range of services provided.
The number of people working in Saskatchewan jumped by 15,100 from August 2007 to August 2008, according to the latest Labour Force Survey released this month by Statistics Canada.
That is an increase of 3% -- the highest growth rate in the country and over double the national average of 1.3%.
Enterprise and Innovation Minister Lyle Stewart said the huge increase in employment is one more sign that Saskatchewan is continuing its economic momentum and Saskatchewan people are enjoying the benefits through increased career opportunities.
0908SASK Skilled trades workers returning home to Saskatchewan
More skilled trades workers are moving back to Saskatchewan to help the construction industry keep pace with record construction activity, according to the latest forecast by the Construction Sector Council.
"Saskatchewan is now a major draw in the fierce Canada-wide competition for skilled labour," said Michael Fougere, president of the Saskatchewan Construction Association.
"With more residents coming back, new immigrants coming in, and apprenticeship programs on the rise, the construction industry is doing everything possible to meet the challenges created by this construction boom," he said.
The huge transportation hub planned for west of the airport will come at a high cost to the City of Regina -- more than $100 million -- but it`s a price tag city councillors say must be paid to reap the economic benefits it will bring.
The Canadian Pacific intermodal facility (IMF) was announced in December and is designed to bring together air, rail and road in one area for importing and exporting goods. Part of the plan is for national distribution centres to set up shop near the IMF and Loblaw Companies Ltd. has already announced that it will build a one-million-square-foot warehouse and distribution centre in the area.
Work is set to begin on the $1.9-billion expansion project at Consumers` Co-operative Refineries Ltd. (CCRL), the biggest capital project -- in dollar terms -- in Regina`s history.
"As far as I know, this would be the single-largest, dollar-investment project in Regina,`` said Bud Van Iderstine, senior vice-president of refining for CCRL.
And Van Iderstine should know, since the next largest project was the NewGrade Energy heavy oil upgrader project at the refinery, which cost $700 million when completed in 1988.
0908SASK Sask.`s economy still strong, premier says
REGINA -- Premier Brad Wall offered assurances Wednesday that Saskatchewan`s economy remains strong, even in the face of recent turmoil in world financial markets and a drop in oil prices.
"People with more credibility than any politician are weighing in on this and they continue to weigh in on the fact that our economy is strong," Wall said, reciting various recent statistics that indicate Saskatchewan is leading the way with its employment growth rate and in new construction and wholesale trade growth.
0908SASK Potash producers say demand remains strong
WINNIPEG (Reuters) -- Shares of fertilizer producers have been battered since June but two Canadian producers said on Wednesday that strong demand and prices bode well for their balance sheets.
Executives from Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan, the world`s largest fertilizer company, and Agrium Inc., a major nitrogen producer and retailer of fertilizer and chemicals, both told investors the outlook for their commodities remains bright.
Equipment challenges at Cameco Corp.`s Key Lake mill are behind a uranium production estimate drop of up to 800,000 pounds of yellowcake this year, says a company spokesperson.
The process of restarting the mill after a three-week scheduled maintenance shutdown ended on Aug. 9 ran into several problems after a number of pieces of equipment at the site did not work properly, said Lyle Krahn from the company`s head office in Saskatoon.
Elsewhere in Canada, the federal election campaign this week could best be summed up by the axiom from former U.S. President Bill Clinton`s 1992 campaign: "It`s the economy, stupid."
Here in Saskatchewan? Well, not so much.
The market meltdown (at least prior to Friday`s rally) seemed to shift the thoughts of Canadian voters to their job security and pension investments.
New programs designed to keep nurses in the province and in the Saskatoon Health Region are being met with success, the numbers show.
Still, soon-to-graduate nurses warn there`s a strong lure to leave Saskatchewan for perks like signing bonuses and jobs in their area of interest.
Data collected in exit surveys from the University of Saskatchewan`s college of nursing and by health region administrators show the number of Saskatoon nursing graduates who find work with the region is on the rise. Also, far more nursing students across the province are being offered jobs post-graduation when working a summer job or a clinical rotation in a unit.
