If you thought last year’s family fun day was jam packed full of excitement, joy and mirth, then you won’t be able to contain yourself this year. The LCA is pleased to announce that our 4th(!) annual family fun day will take place on Saturday June 22 from 11-3 pm at Kiwanis Park (Across from the River Heights mall on Montague Street). As usual, hotdogs, drinks, popcorn and cotton candy will be provided for a very small fee.

Activities include:

Bouncy House 
Face Painting 
Fish Pond

and more!

LCA memberships will also be availible for only $5. This would also be a great opportunity to talk to one of our friendly and approachable board members about one of the many easy and enriching volunteer opportunities we have available. We look forward to seeing you there!

LCA co-chair Carrie Hackel and her family eye up some of the raffle prizes at last year’s family fun day.

Is that Ward Two city councillor Bob Hawkins or Indiana Jones?

This is just a friendly reminder that the registration dates for the 2013 Outdoor Soccer Season are fast approaching. Late registrations will be accepted only to fill vacant spots on teams. In order to avoid dissappointment, be sure to make it to the following registration days at the South Leisure Center, 170 Sunset Dr.

#1: Wednesday, February 27, 2013 7-9 PM
#2: Saturday March 9, 2013 9-11 AM

for more information, visit our soccer page.

The best way to spread Christmas cheer, is singing loud for all to hear.

With the holiday season fast approaching us, it can be easy to forget about other important events. Events like the LCA’s 2013 Winter Registration night. Before you get too caught up in the excitement that is the holiday season, please save this date:

Winter 2013 Registration Night:  

Tuesday, January 8

7pm-8pm 

Lakeview School  (Location: 3100 20^th Avenue)

Details of the programs offered, as well as prices, dates, and times can be found here.

Happy Holidays and see you in 2013!

Ok, so I messed up and deleted the document with the dates and times for the fall programs. Apparently, some of you complained. Well I apologize. Mistakes happen, ok?  The document is back for your viewing pleasure, you can find it under ‘program dates and times’ or by clicking here. 

The Lakeview Planning Committee is pleased to announce that they will be hosting a Candidates forum, featuring mayoral candidates for the 2012 civic election, as well as  Ward 2′s candidates for city council. If you have questions, concerns you would like to address, or just want to rant about all of the problems that our city faces, then come on down! Here are the deets: 

Candidates Forum 

Tuesday, October 2

Lakeviw School (3100 20th Ave.) 

7:30 PM 

We hope to see you there!

The LCA is excited to be starting off the 2012-2013 year with our first meeting this Monday, September 10. The meeting will be from 7-8PM at Lakeview School. We hope to see you there!

As well, our fall registration night is the day after, on Tuesday September 11, from 7-8PM at Lakeview School. Be sure to register on that day as programs fill up fast!

Something to note: The Zumba Class that is scheduled to be on Thursdays this fall has been cancelled due to the instructor being unavailable. We are sorry for the inconvenience.

Us folks at the LCA are in a bit of a bind. We have lots of plans for the future, but we are running out of people to help with these plans! People keep getting pregnant. Or move away to Harbour Landing. If you have ever considered volunteering in the community, but didn’t think you had the time, working with the LCA is the perfect opportunity! The commitment is only a few hours a month, and you recieve amazing benefits such as:

• The Satisfaction of making a difference in the community
• Working with an amazing bunch of people who take community work seriously, but not too seriously.
• Cake on your birthday, if you mention it at the previous meeting.
• $100 to use towards any LCA program.
• Tickets to the South Zone’s “Volunteer Appreciation Night”, the swankiest volunteer event of the year.
• And so much more!

We hope that you, or someone you know, can help us out. We are currently looking for people to fill the following positions:

Secretary- The secretary is a vital role in our association. None of us have neat handwriting, so our lack of a secretary has become a problem. Things have gotten so bad that the minutes of our last meeting had to be written on the back of a napkin. Your duty as secretary would be to record the minutes of our meetings as well as circulate minutes of previous meetings. A printer and ink are provided. No experience is necessary, we would be happy to help you learn the ropes!

Program Coordinator- Janet, our current program coordinator, has a lot of commitments. Janet is hoping to take a step back and help the person who wants to take on this role. This job involves a bit more commitment, as you are required to coordinate and organize all of our community programs. This may sound scary, but after awhile it pretty much runs itself. Once again, no experience is necessary, we will be here to help you every step of the way!

Special Projects Coordinator- Billie-Jo, our previous special projects coordinator, surprised us all when she stabbed us in the back and moved to the deep south (Harbour Landing). Just kidding Billie-Jo, we appreciate all the work you have done and are going to miss you a lot! Anyhoo, the special projects coordinator handles all applications for community grants, as well as any projects that do not fall into anyone else’s roles. An example of this would be helping out with the planning of special events, such as our family fun day.

Membership Coordinator- Now here is a job for anyone with access to a word processing program. All you need to do is take our membership cards, type them out onto a computer, and keep the list up to date. A simple job that would help us out a great deal!

If you are able to help us out, we would like that a lot! Contact either Bob or Carrie and they will get back to you.

Earlier in the year, the Lakeview Community Association was approached by a group of citizens who had some concerns about development in the neighbourhood. Following several other presentations, the Lakeview Community Association agreed to form a new sub-commity to help adress these issues. The following information was prepared by the Lakeview Planning Committee and will help explain exactly who they are and what they are about. Soon, I will create a seperate page on this website for the planning committee where I will post more news as it develops. 

Lakeview Community Association Planning Committee is a new sub-committee of the Lakeview Community Association. The committee was formalized in March 2012 following presentations to the Community Association Executive by a group of concerned Lakeview residents.

Why have a Planning Committee? The planning committee formed in response to the increased development in the Lakeview area. Lakeview is a community in transition and, while the committee thinks that development and change are good for the community, we want to ensure that the elements making Lakeview a successful and desirable community are preserved.

What are those elements? Lakeview Community is a perfect example of what is now described as New Urbanism Development, the goal of many new communities today. Our community provides a variety of services required for daily living, all of which are easily accessible without having to leave the community. It is a walkable community with beautifully treed sidewalks, recreation spaces, green spaces and immediate access to an extensive pathway system and other city parks. These elements, along with the existing housing that provides “eyes on the street,” help to foster a sense of belonging, reinforced by the interaction with neighbours and residents.

So what is the committee concerned about? The committee is concerned about development and housing density and the impacts on the urban environment (parking, loss of green space, traffic, infrastructure etc.) and changes to the overall streetscape and character of the community. The committee sees our neighbourhood evolving and wants to be sure that future development takes into consideration such concerns as structure size, height, existing trees, drainage, and impacts to areas adjacent to the development.

What is Planning Committee is NOT!

• The Planning Committee is NOT just for “Old Lakeview”, it serves the entire community
• The committee is NOT here to settle disputes between neighbours but we will try to direct you to the appropriate department at city hall.
• The committee is NOT trying to control the style of house someone builds

What is the committee working on? 

• We are working towards a better understanding of the limitations and allowances for development in the area: what opportunities are available now under city bylaws and planning, and hoping to coordinate with civic authorities to develop and implement potential changes or amendments to the existing regulations affecting the area and growth

• Meeting with City Hall representatives with the goal of participating in the planning department approval process, providing resident input and support to approved developments.

• The Committee wants to be pro-active and start engaging community members and City Hall in a conversation about what is good for our community. The Committee wants to participate in the Design Regina process and develop a community plan for Lakeview that facilitates positive development while maintaining the specific character of Lakeview.

• The Committee is developing a  list of contact information so that community members with specific development, planning or bylaw questions can be directed to the appropriate resources at City Hall.

How will Lakeview Residents participate? The committee will be at various Community Association events in the coming year and ready to answer questions and take your suggestions. The committee will post updates on the Lakeview Community Association Website and can be reached by e-mail: lakeviewplanning@myaccess.ca

I love reading about Regina history. Sure It’s a little nerdy, but it is a guilty pleasure of mine, and since many of you know me only by my first name I have no problem admitting it out here on the interwebs. Anyways, I was flipping through an old Regina history book and found a neat advertisement from when our neighbourhood was being established. If there is anything I like more than Regina history it is Lakeview history. The ad was sort of neat, and I thought it was definately worth posting here for all to see. In case you are having a hard time seeing the image, here are the reasons that you should build in Lakeview, circa 1914:

• Lakeview is just across the street from the parliament buildings.
• Lakeview is the highest property in the city of Regina.
• Lakeview is where all the expensive homes are being built.
• Lakeview is an absolute sure proposition.
• The city of Regina is building in the direction of Lakeview- it is the only natural direction in which the city can grow!

Other ammenities of building in lakeview, besides being able to live next door to people with loads of cash, included the fact that streetcar service was to run to Lakeview as well as the fact that Albert Street was about to be paved- all the way to 21st Avenue! With lots starting at only $100, you truly could not afford to be without some Lakeview property!

I love it when people send me emails about the posts that I write. For one thing, it tells me that people are actually reading my blog posts, which makes writing them seem slightly more worthwhile. As well, sometimes people have more information than I do, and I can learn a thing or two. Two weeks ago,  I wrote a post about Athabasca School becoming a Sikh temple, and that the city was not doing a very good job at communicating with citizens in the area regarding this whole  process. Cindy Dyck (who happens to be a former LCA executive member) read my blog post and, as it turns out, also attended the open house. Here is what she had to say about the transfer of Athabasca School to the Sikh Society:

The school and property are owned by Regina Public Schools.  When a school is closed and RPS wants to disperse the property, the City has first right of refusal.  So purchasing the building and property was first offered to the City; they had no plans for the land so refused.    

Following the City’s refusal,  RPS put out the “Request for Proposals”.  This is the point where developers, the Sikh group, etc, submit their “bid” for the property. RPS determines which bid they want to accept (who knows what criteria they’re looking at) and that’s about it.  Once Regina Public Schools decides whose bid they’re accepting, then the city seems to take over with regard to neighbourhood notification, running the open house, etc.  

So you seem to have one group making the decision (RPS) and another group dealing with the public(City of Regina), so it’s no wonder noone can provide answers at the public meetings.  There seems to be quite a void  if you would like to be able to provide input as a community with regard to how the community would like to see the property used.  It appears that the only avenue is to go to the open house after the decision has already been made.  Not a very good system especially if you are at all interested in the growth and vitality of your community.