Creative City Centre

What Creative City Centre does

Creative City Centre is a non-profit, artist-run community arts centre headquartered in Regina, Saskatchewan. Founded in 2006 and incorporated in 2008 by Marian Donnelly, it officially opened on May 8, 2011 and has operated continuously since, presenting between 150 and 200 events per year across music, spoken word, visual art, comedy, film, dance and workshop formats. Its core products are approximately 15 distinct programs — including the spoken word series Word Up, the Recording Artist Development (RAD) Program, the podcasts Pep'n Ched, Outside The Spotlight and Bring Out Your Geeks!, the video series An Empty Room and Flatland Music Feature, Drink & Draw community sessions, the Path To Reconciliation mural, and the annual Frost Festival — supported by the Hague Gallery and a new recording/production studio at its forthcoming 1819 Cornwall Street facility. The underlying technology stack is non-proprietary: a standard website, YouTube, Spotify/Apple Podcasts, and basic social media (Instagram, Facebook, X) for content distribution, with no AI, no API and no proprietary software disclosed.

Name

Creative City Centre

Legal name

Creative City Centre

Website

https://creativecitycentre.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Creative City Centre is a non-profit, artist-run community arts centre in Regina, Saskatchewan, presenting 150-200 events per year including spoken word, music, visual art and podcast programming for Saskatchewan artists and community members, funded primarily by government arts councils and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Arts Center

NAICS

Other Performing Arts Companies (711190), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural Centers & Multidisciplinary Arts Institutions (THAJADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural Centers & Community Cultural Organizations (BPAGAHAD), Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH), Arts & Culture Community Festivals (Multidisciplinary Arts Weeks) (MPAGAEAG)

Keywords

• Community arts programming
• Artist development services
• Spoken word events
• Arts venue rental
• Podcast production

Headquarters

HQ city

Regina

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Government Arts Funding: The organization receives recurring funding from government arts councils including the Canada Council for the Arts, Canadian Heritage, SK Arts, Creative Saskatchewan, and the City of Regina. Federal grants bring hundreds of thousands of dollars into the community annually through artist fees, materials and salaries.
2. Donations and Capital Campaign: The centre solicits individual donations and corporate sponsorships. It now has official charitable status and can issue tax receipts for donations over $10. Donations of $1000 or more are recognized with a plaque on the Wall of Fame. The organization is also seeking corporate partners with sponsorship and naming opportunities.
3. Program and Venue Rental Fees: Revenue is generated through event fees such as the $5.00 admission to Word Up open mic nights, as well as gallery rental opportunities and paid programming such as workshops.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Creative City Centre is a non-profit, artist-run community arts centre in downtown Regina, Saskatchewan. It operates a venue and presents 150-200 events annually spanning music concerts, spoken word, poetry slams, visual art exhibitions, comedy nights, life drawing, film screenings, and workshops, while also running structured artist development programs such as the RAD Program and producing original digital content including podcasts and video series.

Product overview

Creative City Centre is a non-profit artist-run community arts centre in Regina, SK that operates as a unified platform of programs and facilities rather than a single product. The centre offers approximately 15 distinct programs including spoken word events (Word Up, Prairie People's Poetry), podcast series (Outside The Spotlight, Bring Out Your Geeks!, Pep'N Ched), music programs (The RAD Program, Flatland Music Feature, The Community Kitchen Party Concert Series, An Empty Room), visual arts programming (Art Talks, Drink & Draw, Path To Reconciliation Mural), craft and dance classes (Karlie's Quick Crafts, Dance Dance Isolation), festival programming (Frost Festival Regina), and a gallery/exhibition space (Hague Gallery). The centre also operates a recording and production studio in its new facility. These programs collectively serve emerging and established artists across multiple disciplines including music, poetry, visual arts, comedy, dance, and performance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RAD Program: Recording Artist Development Program providing studio space and professional recording support for emerging music artists.
• Outside The Spotlight
• Word Up
• Frost Festival
• Community Kitchen Party Concert Series
• Bring Out Your Geeks!

Products and services

• Word Up Regina spoken word series presenting regular poetry slams, community stage open mics, youth nights, and creative writing and performance workshops for spoken word artists and community participants.
• The RAD Program (Recording Artist Development Program) A residency program providing emerging Saskatchewan music artists with four weeks of studio space, professional audio engineering support (25 hours per week), funding toward industry professionals, videographer/photographer access, and a one-year SaskMusic membership to produce a recording and electronic press kit.
• Drink & Draw Monthly community drawing sessions hosted at Hampton Hub featuring pop-up art prompts for participants of all skill levels, run by Geanna Dunbar and Joel Hustak.
• Pep'N Ched Podcast co-produced with musician Megan Nash featuring conversations with musician friends about life as working artists; distributed via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Player FM, the National College Radio Association Exchange, and CJTR 91.3 FM in Regina.
• Outside The Spotlight Limited podcast series in which performing artists discuss their mental health journeys and how those experiences impact and foster their art.
• Bring Out Your Geeks! Podcast hosted by Devon Dozlaw exploring the geeky hobbies and personal interests of Saskatchewan-based artists.
• An Empty Room Multi-season video series featuring live off-the-floor recordings by Saskatchewan artists capturing performances in rooms without an audience, including artists such as Colter Wall and Belle Plaine.
• The Community Kitchen Party Concert Series Video series offering behind-the-scenes looks at local Saskatchewan musicians and recording artists jamming with friends, featuring storytelling, laughter, and live music performances.

Quantifiable outcome

• Produced 150-200 events per year since 2011, reaching tens of thousands of community members in Regina and Saskatchewan
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Regina DowntowncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 February 2026Creative City Centre partners with Regina Downtown on the annual Frost Festival Regina, operating the Art Shack as an arts hub in Victoria Park. The centre also partners with Regina Downtown on the Path To Reconciliation mural project, Pop Up Downtown, Regina Tornado Legacy Project, Art in the Park, and other public art initiatives.
• Sâkȇwȇwȇwak First Nations Artist CollectivecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Sâkȇwȇwȇwak First Nations Artist Collective is represented on the curatorial committee for the Creative City Centre's new gallery space, contributing to the curation of approximately 6-7 visual art exhibitions per programming season.
• Indigenous Curatorial CollectivecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Indigenous Curatorial Collective is represented on the curatorial committee for the Creative City Centre's new gallery space, working jointly with the centre and Sâkȇwȇwȇwak First Nations Artist Collective to curate visual art exhibitions.
• SaskMusicminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSaskMusic supported the An Empty Room video series. RAD Program participants receive a one-year membership to SaskMusic to access professional development and industry support initiatives.
• Regina Downtown Business Improvement District (RDBID)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Path To Reconciliation mural project was a collaborative initiative between the Creative City Centre and Regina Downtown. RDBID has led numerous public art programs including the Footprints Commemorative Indigenous Art Project and Urban Canvas program.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• AKA Artist-Run Centre: Saskatoon-based artist-run centre and Creative City Centre's closest in-province peer. Operates a similar hybrid model of exhibitions, residencies, and community programming, and competes for the same Saskatchewan Arts Alliance, SK Arts, and Canada Council funding pools.
• Stride Gallery: Calgary-based artist-run centre established in 1984, presenting contemporary art exhibitions and public programming. Highly comparable as a Prairie-city artist-run organization with exhibition, publication, and community-engagement mandates.
• The Cultch (Vancouver East Cultural Centre): Vancouver community performing arts venue presenting music, dance, theatre, and spoken word. Comparable presenting-house model with similar focus on emerging and culturally diverse artists, though at a larger urban scale.
• 25th Street Theatre: Saskatoon-based community-engaged theatre company creating work with and for equity-seeking communities. Comparable Saskatchewan-rooted non-profit arts organization drawing on the same provincial and federal funding streams.
• grunt gallery: Vancouver artist-run centre focused on media and contemporary art with a strong social practice and community-engagement orientation. Comparable non-profit artist-run model with exhibitions, residencies, and public programming.
• Western Front: Vancouver artist-run centre combining exhibitions, residencies, music, performance, and media production. Closely parallels Creative City Centre's multidisciplinary 'gallery + performance venue + recording studio' model.
• Commonweal Community Arts: Regina-based community arts organization focused on arts-based community development. Co-locates with Creative City Centre in the new 1819 Cornwall Street facility and shares overlap in serving newcomer, Indigenous, and equity-deserving artists in the same city.
• The Artesian: Regina performing arts venue referenced as a Creative City Centre programming partner (e.g., Word Up open mic nights). Operates a comparable community-presenting model in the same downtown core, directly competing for audiences and event bookings.

Broad incumbents

• The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity: Much larger Canadian arts training and presenting institution with residencies, performance, and gallery programming. Operates at a national/international scale and is a comparable funder of artist development, but is orders of magnitude larger and not a direct community-arts competitor.
• National Arts Centre (Canada): Canada's federal performing arts presenting institution, funded by Canadian Heritage. Shares funder overlap with Creative City Centre and offers a broader (national) presentation platform, but serves a fundamentally different scale and mandate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CreativeCityCtr
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/CreativeCityCentreSK
• Facebookfacebook.com/creativecityctr
• Instagraminstagram.com/creativecityctr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/creative-city-centre

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Creative City Centre