Looking back on the news in 2018 it's easy to feel discouraged.
A major strike involving territorial government workers, which loomed all year, now threatens to send GNWT employees to the picket lines at the worst possible time – in the dead of winter when household expenses are at their highest. A strike in early 2019, which would involve nearly 4,000 workers, has the potential to do great damage to the territory if weeks were to drag on into months.
This dark cloud hung low over the territory as the Conference Board of Canada issued its usual cheery report last fall warning of another expected contraction of the economy and a “grim” forecast overall.
All three mines in the territory are slated to close by 2034 and the effects of those closures will be felt from now until that final closure with the loss of close to 4,000 jobs and a spiking unemployment rate across the territory.
The cost of living continues to rise remorselessly in the North and will likely rise even more with the expected carbon tax coming this summer that will literally increase the cost of everything. While the GNWT assures residents that aviation and home heating fuel will be spared, an increase on the prtice of gasoline at the pumps means not only will driving become more expensive but the price on goods being transported to the North will go up as well.
The NWT remains desperate for investment – from both government and business.
At the beginning of this year Premier Bob McLeod called for a national discussion on developing the North. A year later though, and there hasn’t been much in the way of progress on the business investment front.
Several mining projects could make a difference for the economy of the territory: Pine Point,the NICO Mine and Nechalacho rare earths have some promise but are still years away from actuality.
Without an alternative economic plan, the territory and its First Nations groups face a similar fate to that of British Columbia – being left empty-handed after project failures due to strict or lengthy environmental impact assessments and reviews.
Meanwhile, infrastructure projects that could help the territory meet its carbon emission targets in Ottawa, such as a hydro grid connecting Snare River to the south, remain prohibitively expensive and no closer to reality.
Tourism has been one of the great success stories in recent years as mainly Asian tourists have flocked to the city in the fall and winter to view the Northern lights but a new wrinkle threatens to put that progress in jeopardy as the diplomatic dispute with China escalates over Canada's arrest of a Chinese telecom executive accused of bank fraud in the U.S.
Last year was an exciting one for the city politically, with the election of two-term city councillor Rebecca Alty as mayor and three fresh faces on council. But our city officials face tough choices.
The city is looking at the possibility of a new $50-million aquatic centre and replacing the city’s main water line to the Yellowknife River. But those “big city items” come with a cost – an $11-million proposed deficit this year and $43 million in 2020. These capital projects would see the city’s budget climb into the nine-figure zone, a first for a city where the population has not increased significantly in 10 years.
All the issues stated here are cause for great concern. Fortunately, history indicates that Yellowknife is resilient when faced with challenges. High costs and infrastructure deficits have always been a problem and mines have come and gone. But the quality of life remains high and there are still plenty of opportunities for the people who choose to live here.
The prospect of a polytechnic university in the city is an exciting one that promises new growth and where people once fled the city after retiring, increasingly seniors are settling in and staying.
The upcoming year promises plenty of more things to worry about but there is also reason to hope for better things to come.
Really, it's up to all of us to make Yellowknife a better place in 2019. There are plenty of challenges ahead but Yellowknifers are clearly committed to making it work.
On that note, we wish everyone in Yellowknife well as we turn a new page on a new year. Here's to 2019!