Proposed Cuts to Regina’s Arts and Community Funding

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Canadian paper dollar bills - $50, $100, $20

What You Need to Know 

The City of Regina’s draft 2025–2027 budget includes optional cuts that City Council can choose to adopt. Several of these cuts are in Recreation and Cultural Services, which is where most community and cultural grants come from.

The biggest concern is the possible elimination of the Community Investments Grant Program (CIGP). This is the main program that provides municipal funding to arts, culture, festivals, community organizations, social impact groups, and neighbourhood activities across the city.

This isn’t good. 

Council will decide December 15. Your voice matters.

Why this is important

Regina’s arts, culture, and community programs depend on City Council’s funding. These municipal dollars are often needed to unlock provincial and federal grants. 

Without ongoing City of Regina funding, many organizations will lose eligibility for essential funding and may be forced to shrink, cancel programs, or close. 

Cuts to recreation and cultural services also reduce access to community spaces and affordable arts programs.

Budget Cuts Being Considered Include:

  • Eliminating the Community Investments Grant Program. This is the main municipal funder for arts, culture, festivals, and community programs. Less funding means Regina has less of all of this – important parts of our economy, our society, our belonging and well-being.
     • Possible closure or off-loading of the Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre. Many organizations,  and programs would lose this key community arts hub.
    • Reductions that weaken community associations, cultural programs, and neighbourhood services across the city.

These cuts would negatively impact Regina’s cultural and community landscape for years to come.

Why does this matter?

Municipal funding is the first building block for many cultural and community programs. It is often the support organizations need to unlock provincial and federal funding.

Some federal programs, including the Canadian Heritage Local Festivals Program, require confirmation of municipal funding before an application can even be reviewed. If municipal funding is removed, many Regina groups will no longer be eligible for federal dollars.

This means that cuts at the city level do not just remove local dollars. They can also cause major losses of federal and provincial funding.

Who is affected?

If the CIGP and related programs are cut, it will affect:

  • Festivals and events
     • Community arts groups
     • Indigenous cultural programs
     • Youth, seniors, and neighbourhood programming
     • Community associations and zone boards
     • Social impact and wellbeing initiatives
     • Spaces like the Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre and community centres (through separate proposed cuts)

In short, these cuts touch almost every part of Regina’s cultural and community life.

What are the possible impacts?

  • Fewer festivals, events, and community activities
     • Reduced access to affordable arts classes, spaces, and neighbourhood programs
     • Loss of federal and provincial funding that depends on municipal contributions
     • Smaller organizations at risk of closing or shrinking
     • Fewer opportunities for youth and families to participate in accessible programs
     • Less activity in community centres and public spaces

For even more details, read SAA’s Breakdown here.

What you can do

You, and everyone you know, can help protect arts, culture, and community programs by contacting the Mayor and their City Councillor before December 15.

We’ve made this easy. Click here to send a ready-to-use letter through our online too. You can personalize the message if you want.

Your voice is vital. Even a short message helps the City Council understand what these programs mean to the people who live here.

Community and cultural funding is part of what makes Regina safe, welcoming, creative, and connected. Protecting these programs protects the people who rely on them.