Regina city council passes Clean Communities motion

A motion to address the Regina's garbage problem was approved at Wednesday's city council meeting.

Couns. Andrew Stevens and Dan Leblanc put themotion forth last April to address the overwhelming amount of litter and loose garbage found in Regina's streets and alleyways.

With the motion approved, city-led litter pick-up will go from once in the spring to several times,includingsummer and fall.

There will also be stricter enforcement of bylaws that involve excess litter, illegal dumping and unsightly yards.

The fines for violations of contributing to excess litter are $150for the first offence, $200 for the second and $250 for the third.

While the motion was put forward with the North Central and Heritage communities in mind, it states that any area that has a reported garbage issue will be addressed.

City boundaries alteration

Another motion addressed Wednesday afternoon concernedthe alteration of city boundaries for a northeast portion of the city.

The proposed boundary alteration area is about 2.3 kilometres east of Evraz.

The motion saiddevelopment in the area by large industrial userswill benefit the city with economic growth, but willrequire access to city services.

It also saiddevelopment of the area aligns with policies noted in the official community plan and Regina's 2030 economic growth plan.

Coopertown

Also up for discussion wasthe first zoning amendment for the development of Coopertown. The proposed neighbourhood is in the northwest area of Regina and was introduced by Dream Development in 2013.

The plan for the neighbourhood sees residential development from Armour Road to Ninth Avenue North. The plot of land is nestled between Courtney Street and the Regina Bypass and spans more than 809 hectares.

According to the Dream Development website, Coopertownwill be home to approximately 36,000 residents once fully developed.

The motion said the area will have a mix of low, medium and high density residential lots. Dream is proposing residential urban, residential low-rise and residential high-rise zones for the neighbourhood.

Wednesday'smotion only covers phase one of the project.

Some people in the neighbourhoods adjacent to Ninth Avenue North saidthey are opposed to the development of Coopertown as currently proposed. Residents said there has been an influx of noise pollution over the last couple years due to the bypass and increased traffic. Some said their backyards, which face Ninth Avenue North, are now unusable and have even become dangerous due to speeding vehicles.

They would like to see a comprehensive noise attenuation plan for the area includingfencing, berms and landscaping before the development of Coopertown.

Pesticides

The regulation of non-essential use of pesticides was also on the table atWednesday's meeting.

City council put the motion forward in March. It says the cosmetic use of pesticides should be regulated.

An estimate of the cost for creating a report on the matter was put forward Wednesday. The report willlook at potential effects on the environment and biodiversity in the City of Regina.

The report will alsolook at the legal considerations of regulations and best practices to maintain areas without the use of pesticides.

It willalso get residents' feedback on the use of pesticides and research public education strategies to reduce usage.

The estimated cost, which is $70,000,includes a partnership with the University of Regina to further research the issue.