Yellowknife and Inuvik are set to be confirmed as military “northern operational support hubs” according to remarks made in the NWT legislature on Friday.
Northern operational support hubs were a key item in a much broader national defence spending plan set out by Ottawa last year.
That plan included $218 million over 20 years to create the support hubs. That money is earmarked for the likes of airstrips, buildings, equipment and materials.
The idea is that becoming a military support hub brings with it investment that upgrades local infrastructure and benefits the community. In defence speak, this is known as “dual use” investment – spending that helps the Canadian Armed Forces and northern communities at the same time.
The Department of National Defence is expected to make a “significant announcement” in Iqaluit next week that may or may not be the list of chosen support hubs.
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On Friday, NWT MLAs appeared to discuss the list of support hubs during a detailed discussion about the territory’s diplomatic relations with Ottawa.
Inuvik Boot Lake MLA Denny Rodgers said the announcement would involve 10 support hubs including “one in Yellowknife, one in Inuvik and one in Iqaluit, which is good news.”
“It appears they’re planning on putting some personnel in there, too, so I think that’s great news,” he told colleagues.
The Department of National Defence had not independently confirmed any list of support hubs as of Friday afternoon. Nor had Ottawa confirmed 10 sites will be announced.
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All three communities Rodgers mentioned are already forward operating locations, designations they were given in the 1980s as facilities to help guard Canada’s northern frontier. Canada has already said it is upgrading those forward operating locations, but the support hub label appears to unlock significant extra investment.
‘More engagement beforehand’
Rodgers made his Friday remarks in the context of a question to Premier RJ Simpson about northern collaboration on Arctic security.
Simpson, in response, said northern relations with Ottawa were improving.
“The federal government now appears to know that they should come talk to us when things are happening,” Simpson said.
“If they plan on announcing something, we don’t get a 10-minute heads up any more. There’s more engagement beforehand. There’s more willingness at the political and official level to reach out and actually engage and talk about what might be needed going forward.”
Simpson pointed out that military investment in a northern community might involve the need for an upgraded water treatment plant or highway infrastructure to support that, or even new childcare spaces if personnel are to be deployed locally – conversations with which the NWT government can assist.
That is exactly the kind of investment northern communities have hoped for as they compete to find a place on the list of support hubs.
In Inuvik, the extra spending might mean an upgrade that restores something resembling full military base to the town for the first time in decades.
Meanwhile, Yellowknife’s city council has formally urged defence minister Bill Blair “to choose Yellowknife and the Yellowknife Airport as a strategic centre for enhanced security and military capability.”
The Conservatives have suggested they would support planned military upgrades for Yellowknife and Inuvik if they form the next government following this year’s federal election. They are also promising a new military base in Iqaluit.
