Green spaces, infill dominate Yellowknife community plan hearing

Proposals for both greenfield development and intensification in Yellowknife’s draft new community plan are facing opposition from some residents.

The YK 2050 plan is a high-level document that outlines the city’s vision for development and will guide land decisions in Yellowknife over the next 25 years.

The plan is based in part on projections that Yellowknife will need 2,000 additional housing units by 2050. To meet that demand, YK 2050 states the city will need intensification and infill in existing neighbourhoods alongside greenfield development, mainly on land north and west of Frame Lake.

The Yellowknife and NWT governments have said work to transfer that land is progressing.

At a public hearing on Wednesday, resident Agnieszka Makuch raised issue with plans to develop the Frame Lake trail area. Makuch called it one of the few green spaces within the city that is great for walking or biking by the lake. She voiced concerns with blasting, costs, snow melt, and environmental impacts.

“This green space has a huge impact on all of us,” she said.

“I remember when I arrived first to Yellowknife, that was the place where I could go because I didn’t have a car.”

Makuch said she would prefer development of empty lots or lots with abandoned buildings.

Councillor Ryan Fequet said the community plan includes policies to ensure the continuous connection of the Frame Lake trail system and a development buffer to preserve the shoreline.

The city has repeatedly said it cannot force development or sale of empty lots that are privately owned, but the municipality is developing a vacant land bylaw and vacant building bylaw to encourage development of such properties.

Lauren King became emotional as she spoke on behalf of green spaces.

“They are always on the chopping block,” she said. “They have a lot of value for species at risk but also for the livability of the city.”

King said she felt other areas of the city could be used for housing development, including Kam Lake and Taylor Road, and she supports intensification in existing neighbourhoods.

Mayor Ben Hendriksen highlighted housing pressures the city is facing, with a current vacancy rate of less than one percent and more than 300 people experiencing homelessness according to the most recent point-in-time count.

City manager Stephen Van Dine said greenfield development in Yellowknife “hadn’t really occurred since 2017.”

Van Dine said the land available for the city to develop directly correlates with the amount of property tax residents must pay to cover operating costs.

Downtown ‘decay’

Resident Ann Peters said premature greenfield development could lead to “decay” of Yellowknife’s downtown.

“I think sequencing is possibly the biggest problem in the plan,” Peters said. “As soon as you open the doors to greenfield development, that is easier for available developers to go ahead with.”

Peters said the draft plan’s environmental policies ignore the importance of the natural environment in the city.

The draft community plan sets out housing targets for certain areas of the city over the next 25 years.

At least 30 percent of new housing is expected through downtown intensification, 10 percent through intensification of existing neighbourhoods, 10 percent through a development corridor along Old Airport Road, and 50 percent from greenfield development of the Frame Lake area.

Shelley Hawrelak told councillors she opposes the “aggressive” intensification targets as she worries that development will burden ageing infrastructure, result in the loss of green space, and impact neighbourhood character. She is one of 11 residents currently taking the city to court over its plan to develop housing on Burwash Hill.

“I don’t feel our backs are against the wall,” she said. “We’ve got money coming into the territory. We’ve got land that everyone is hoping can be accessed.”

Active transportation support

The only person to speak in support of the community plan at Wednesday’s hearing was Adam Denley, co-founder of bike share program Shift NWT.

Denley highlighted sections of the plan that support a shift toward low-carbon transportation and prioritize active and public transportation. He said that does not mean people will not be able to drive private vehicles but does recognize the costs of doing so, such as pollution and parking.

He said one thing that prevents people from using active transportation to get around the city is concern about being hit by a vehicle.

“If we are building active transportation networks that are safe and efficient and comfortable, people are going to use them year round,” he said.

“Having these networks in place also goes a long way towards improving the affordability in town.”

Lois Little did not speak at Wednesday’s hearing but wrote to the city expressing disappointment with the process for developing the community plan and the inclusion of public input.

Little told Cabin Radio she had participated in a previous public consultation on the plan but felt the city was prioritizing corporate and military interests over public interests.

“We have a community plan that they spent a year and a lot of money developing with a lot of citizen input,” she said.

“What we are seeing is that the chamber of commerce, the commercial interests and military interests can just override what is in the plan.”

As an example, Little pointed to the city’s decision to drop mandatory affordable housing targets that appeared in an initial draft of the plan. She said affordable housing and green space were topics repeatedly raised in focus groups.

The current draft of the plan instead relies on a voluntary approach and financial incentives to encourage development of affordable housing.

The community plan needs to pass three readings at council and get the approval of the NWT minister of municipal and community affairs before it can be enacted.

Council has passed first reading of the community plan, which triggered the requirement for a public hearing.

The city has said second reading of the plan could take place on September 23, followed by submission to the territorial government by the end of next month, before the plan would return to city council for third reading.