Business group criticizes direction of Yellowknife’s community plan

The Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce says it’s concerned the city is not adequately considering the business perspective in updating its community plan.

The city has been working on a comprehensive review of its community plan, which was last overhauled in 2020.

The municipality refers to the document as a “roadmap” that will guide development in the coming years while considering sustainability, the environment and socio-economic and cultural factors.

While the city is still working on a draft of the updated version, City Hall released a report in January summarizing feedback from community engagement and directions that will guide its work.

In a letter to members on Monday, the Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce said it does not feel its concerns were adequately reflected in that report.

The chamber opined the updated community plan could “follow the same problematic direction” as the current plan, saying the 2020 plan does not identify enough land to meet demand for housing.

The chamber called on the city to:

• build and maintain an inventory of developable land to meet at least three years of anticipated demand;
• set specific housing targets, including number and type;
• adopt a target of developing 50 percent greenfield and 50 percent infill for housing; and
• provide guidance for the next 25 years.

City considering feedback

In an interview with Cabin Radio, city manager Stephen Van Dine said the city is “really pleased” that the chamber engaged with the community plan review.

“They’re an important stakeholder in our community,” he said. “I think they bring a lot of value from their perspective on what the city needs to consider in its community plan.”

He said the city plans to consider the chamber’s requests and accommodate its interests where appropriate in the new community plan.

Van Dine said the chamber’s request regarding the need for a land inventory is “a really important point.”

The city has for years been vocal about the need for more land to develop, and has been actively pursuing the transfer of large blocks of commissioner’s land.

“If we’re successful in getting those requests accommodated, then I think we’d be in a better position to do some of the medium-term planning work that that request from the chamber speaks to,” Van Dine said.

Regarding the request for specific housing targets, Van Dine said while he understands the chamber’s desire for precise numbers, that may be challenging as some things in the housing market are beyond the city’s control.

‘A difficult exercise’

While the chamber of commerce has voiced the direction it believes the new community plan should take, not everyone agrees.

According to the city’s engagement report, participants shared mixed views on several topics, including whether development should focus on infill and intensification or expansion.

Some people said the city should prioritize developing underutilized land, infill and intensification, and opposed analyzing green spaces solely through a development lens. Others expressed concern about an intensification-focused approach and stressed the need for expansion.

The city has previously seen opposition from residents to both infill and greenfield development plans.

“Yellowknifers come in many different shapes and sizes and voices, and I think the engagement process, it’s kind-of revealed that there are a variety of different voices in the community,” Van Dine said, adding it’s healthy to have a space where people can voice opposing views.

He said city staff now need to draft policy statements for the community plan that balance different interests and needs with the aim of a healthy, vibrant and sustainable future for the community.

“Will everybody be happy? Who knows. It’s a blend, right?” he said.

“It’ll be a difficult exercise to get a blended document that makes sense for Yellowknife, that takes the community forward.”

Van Dine said city staff hope to present a draft of the updated community plan to councillors before the summer.