The City of Yellowknife and Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce say they’re awaiting funding for several initiatives aimed at revitalizing the downtown.
On Monday, representatives of the city, chamber and NWT Tourism provided a progress update on outcomes from a July 2025 “brainstorming session” with business owners focused on public and employee safety.
Among priorities identified by businesses at that meeting were a desire for:
- more downtown community events such as festivals to increase foot traffic;
- a business improvement association or district;
- an ambassador program similar to a program in Calgary;
- an incident response guide; and
- a social enterprise.
Matt Halliday, executive director of the chamber of commerce, said the chamber had applied to the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency for funding to start a business improvement association to coordinate beautification, promotion and safety efforts in the downtown – but was unsuccessful.
“It’s still a high priority for the chamber,” he said.
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Kerry Thistle, the city’s director of economic opportunities and investment, said municipal enforcement officers had increased their presence downtown. She also pointed to events the city has supported downtown, such as Harley’s Show & Shine and the Territorial Agrifood Association’s culinary festival.
Thistle added that since the July meeting, an incident response guide was developed and delivered to some businesses in the downtown core.
Thistle said the city has also researched ambassador programs in other jurisdictions, including training and hours of operation.
She said the city, chamber and NWT Tourism have developed a framework and budget for a pilot project in Yellowknife and will now “have to find a champion” to lead the project, as well as search for funding.
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“I think we’re in a really good spot now to be able to kind-of figure out: what does this funding model look like to bring this to fruition?” Halliday said. “Going forward, we all see immense value in this happening.”
In Calgary, downtown ambassadors walk the streets in teams of two, checking in on community members, helping people navigate the downtown, “building ties” with local businesses and “being a resource to vulnerable people by connecting them to services and supports.”
The extent to which a Yellowknife program would follow the same model is not yet clear.
Finally, Thistle said organizations behind a proposed non-profit, low-barrier café have applied for funding for the employment and social inclusion intiative.
Thistle said the city and chamber’s next steps are focused on continuing to support community-led initiatives.
“There’s a lot of momentum behind these pieces going forward,” Halliday said.
“It’s just a matter of continuing to work with everybody … to bring these to fruition.”
