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Deanna Cornfield

1. What in your experience and background makes you the right person to shepherd the NWT’s economic development through the next four years?

I want to revitalize local businesses and secure a bright future for our children. I bring a wealth of experience to the table, having worked in the IT and telecommunications industry for over 20 years.  My background includes marketing, sales, technology, fleet management, procurement and logistics in various industries.  I have a proven track record in market share expansion in product management roles in diverse portfolios. I have a proven track record of cost efficiencies, revenue growth and strategic leadership growth, equipping me with the skills needed for effective leadership and advocacy.

 

2. What action will you take to increase land availability within the City?

Will you commit to the expedited transfer of all lands in the municipal boundary, under the administration and control of the Commissioner of the NWT, to the City?

As your MLA I will work to expedite land transfers and look to ways to streamline the current processes. I will work collaboratively with Indigenous governments, ensuring their perspectives are integrated into policy-making.

 

3. As an MLA, how do you plan to address and facilitate immigration to our region to promote economic growth and job opportunities?

How will you support the integration of newcomers to our unique northern communities?

I will promote job opportunities for Indigenous people both in the trades, industry and within government. I will push for increased education, skills training opportunities, and supports for Indigenous youth to thrive and to ensure prosperity for future generations.  The GNWT should invest in key sectors such as renewable energy, tourism, and sustainable resource development. Supporting local entrepreneurs, fostering innovation, and enhancing infrastructure will attract investments, create jobs, and stimulate economic growth. We also need to bring more skilled labour to the territories while retaining the workers currently living and working in the NWT. I will work on making it easier for accreditations from other jurisdictions to be accepted in NWT. We need to work on fully integrating newcomers into northern communities, they can otherwise feel very isolated, and alone and therefore don’t stay. 

 

4. As MLA, what specific steps will you take to support and strengthen the local/northern construction industry?

I’ve been talking with construction companies and developers regarding the housing issue that is holding back economic growth. They tell me there’s a need for skilled labour.  We need to incentivise our youth to go into the trades and stay in the territory, we need to bring skilled labourers to the North and incentivise them to stay in the North.

 

5. As MLA, how will you look to leverage remediation projects so that associated jobs, work, contracts and innovation stay in and benefit the NWT?

As the Giant Mine remediation progresses, I will explore opportunities for local employment, training, and sustainable development in the north, maximizing economic benefits for our community. My vision for economic development in the NWT focuses on diversification, innovation, and sustainability. I advocate for strategic investments in key sectors, job training, and support for local entrepreneurs. I will work to strengthen and diversify the economy by promoting green technologies, supporting small businesses, and fostering partnerships between industries and educational institutions. Additionally I will look at reviewing, and strengthening the BIP policy to ensure that local and Indigenous companies are at the forefront of these opportunities.

 

6. As we look to diversify the NWT’s economy, what economic growth opportunities to you see inherent in YK’s airport?

Do you think it is time to transition the YK Airport to an airport authority model that allows for greater flexibility to invest in infrastructure, improve services, and manage finances?

Yellowknife's airport, positioned at the heart of Canada's North, offers significant economic prospects, supporting key sectors like mining, natural resources, and tourism. 

The government's plans to expand airport facilities and add retail and hotel spaces align with modernizing airport infrastructure, creating jobs, and attracting businesses and visitors. Transitioning to an airport authority model could enhance flexibility, enabling crucial investments in infrastructure and service improvements. 

However, concerns raised by committee members regarding competing with existing businesses and the expense of the developments are valid. Public engagement sessions are crucial, allowing input from stakeholders, ensuring the development aligns with community needs. 

Strategic planning, cost-benefit analysis, and collaboration between public and private sectors are essential. With careful consideration of these factors, Yellowknife's airport can harness its potential, driving economic growth, and fostering a sustainable future for the Northwest Territories.

 

7.As an MLA, how will you make downtown Yellowknife a more attractive place for tourists to visit and for future business involvement?

How do you view the intersection between homelessness and public safety?

Proper engagement needs to be done with MED and RCMP to ensure the safety of our citizens and our local businesses. I am fully supportive of the Yellowknife’s Street Outreach program, expanding its reach and impact. I would look to champion the GNWT's "A Way Home" initiatives, advocating for sustained funding and implementation.  I am committed to exploring and implementing innovative crisis response models like CAHOOTS, fostering a compassionate approach to mental health crises.  To address homelessness, addictions, and mental health, I will collaborate with stakeholders, prioritizing evidence-based programs and supporting community-driven solutions. I would also reach out to other territories and provinces to foster collaboration and idea sharing.

 

8. As an MLA, what concrete steps will you take to build the collaboration necessary to implement comprehensive solutions to these issues?

What accountability measures will you commit to implement to ensure meaningful action takes place to address these issues?

As an MLA, I am fully committed to fostering collaboration among all stakeholders. I will initiate regular forums, bringing together government representatives, private sector leaders, Indigenous communities and non-profits to facilitate open dialogue and idea exchange.  Additionally, I'll work towards establishing joint task forces to address specific challenges. To ensure accountability, I will advocate for transparent reporting mechanisms, regular progress assessments, and public consultations. 

Stuart Wray

1. What in your experience and background makes you the right person to shepherd the Northwest Territories’ economic development through the next four years?

It's important to note, you cannot have economic development without housing, without some foundational pieces, without our social issues solved. Economic development will solve some of our social issues. If we want economic development then we need people and to attract people we need houses. I am from here, I know these issues, I've watched them build over the last 25 years. I know they need to be addressed, there has been a lack of decision making and the worst decision you can make is indecision. 

 

2. As an MLA what action will you take to increase land availability within the City of Yellowknife?

As an MLA will you commit to the expedited transfer of all lands in the municipal boundary, under the administration and control of the Commissioner of the NWT, to the City of Yellowknife?

 First I think the municipality needs to work on their community plan which we can help support. Greenfield projects don't help if you don't have the infrastructure to support these new homes. You can't just transfer land and go to work building homes. Recent zoning by-laws are highly promoting densification in the face of new development.
Yes, I would commit to expedited transfer of all lands but as I mentioned before there needs to be infrastructure in place and development must be long-term and sustainable.
 
3. As an MLA or member of Cabinet, how do you plan to address and facilitate economic immigration to our region to promote economic growth and job opportunities?
How will you support the integration of newcomers into our unique northern communities?
Like I've been mentioning, this isn't an easy fix, If we can fix this over four years I would be surprised. We need to fix our community plans, bridge the municipal funding gap, develop infrastructure and homes to put people in.
This isn't a simple problem, we have to look at the root of the problem. Look back at the inception of the diamond mines, the City and the Territory worked together and whole neighbourhoods were built. We need homes for people.
 
4. As an MLA what specific steps will you take to support and strengthen the local/northern construction Industry?
We need to get back into the schools and start asking students what they are doing after school. We need student specific career guidance. More one on one time with counselors to discuss where these students want to go in life.
5. As an MLA how will you look to leverage remediation projects so that associated jobs, work, contracts, innovation stay in, and benefit, the NWT?
Tough to keep the jobs in the North when we don't have houses to put people in.
 
6. As we look to diversify the NWT’s economy, what economic growth opportunities do you see inherent in Yellowknife’s airport?

Do you think it is time to transition the Yellowknife Airport to an airport authority model allowing for greater flexibility to invest in infrastructure, improve services, and manage their finances?

I think the airport works for what it is needed for at the moment. Our airport is mainly a goods and services hub, where do the majority of those goods and services go? To the mines, and those are slowing down. So unless we kick exploration into high gear then we don't need to expand the airport.
 
We need to start promoting our tourism better. Does our airport see that much traffic anymore? We don't need the airport for Fisheries or Agriculture, Hay River is the hub for those industries.
 
7. As an MLA how will you make downtown Yellowknife a more attractive place for tourists to visit and for future business investment?

How do you view the intersection between homelessness and public safety?

That's a municipal decision. As an MLA I can support bridging the municipal funding gap. I believe the Territorial government can provide support but we have to stop trying to fix everything and start supporting our communities better so they can tackle these issues.
We need to balance public safety and homelessness. Again, this isn't a simple fix. We need to get to the root of the issue, what were the conditions for that person to become homeless.
 
8. As an MLA, what concrete steps will you take to build the collaboration necessary to implement comprehensive solutions to these issues?
What accountability measures will you commit to implement to ensure meaningful action takes place to address these issues?
I would work with the intergovernmental council, build trust with indigenous governments, work with municipalities, bridge the municipal funding gap and start to build trust between all levels of government.
This is a single MLA issue. The Territorial government doesn't need to solve indigenous/municipal issues. We need to support them in solving their own issues.

Julian Morse

1. What in your experience and background makes you the right person to shepherd the NWT’s economic development through the next four years?

I wouldn’t think of myself in the singular on this, but rather as a valuable part of a strong team, advised by many staff, and by the various organizations MLAs engage with, including the Chamber.

I have a wide breadth of professional experience, including technical field work, mining regulation, both at the Boards and providing regulatory support for industry, and served two terms on Yellowknife city council. I'm certified to operate commercial watercraft and have worked as a zodiac driver and polar bear guard for a tourism company in the high arctic. I have education in political science, environment and natural resources technology, and a degree in conflict analysis & management, which focused on change management in organizations.

I am one of the few candidates who can speak to having successfully brought forward a unique vision for community economic development. During my time on council I advocated for development of a university in our community and saw this goal through a number of critical steps which have gotten us much closer to realizing the opportunity. I established and chaired the city’s post-secondary advisory committee, which oversaw development of the feasibility study which advised that this project could bring significant economic benefit to our community. It is relatively easy to take existing initiatives and champion them as many are now doing for the university – it is a much rarer ability to identify something completely new and bring it to the forefront. We need this kind of thinking now more than ever.

I intimately understand the potential that development of the knowledge economy holds for our future, and have already shown myself to be a successful advocate for it. To this day, despite the large amount of evidence supporting this economic development model, few seem to understand how this project needs to move forward to be successful, and I strongly feel it needs a champion at the legislative assembly. We are far from the finish line on this project, and there is still a high risk it could fail without renewed commitment and visionary leadership.

As mentioned above, I have 10 years of experience working in the NWT’s regulatory system, one of the primary means by which GNWT interacts with the mining and exploration industry in a direct way. Understanding how this complex system and its various pieces of legislation work means I am well-prepared to come to the table with not only ideas of my own for how it could better facilitate activity, but also bring a strong understanding to conversations with stakeholders for changes they would like to see.

As a councillor I was a strong advocate for a wide range of economic diversification, and served on the Mayor’s Task Force on Economic Development, which oversaw development of the City’s 2020-24 Economic Development Strategy, so I come to the table with a good understanding of the various diversification initiatives currently being pursued.

 

2. What action will you take to increase land availability within the City?

Will you commit to the expedited transfer of all lands in the municipal boundary, under the administration and control of the Commissioner of the NWT, to the City?

It’s worth noting that during my time on council, we oversaw a few steps which will help with this problem. One was changes to the community plan which reduced restrictions on development, and opened areas of the community for infill development. Another was a joint application with YKDFN for municipal boundary changes which would see a much larger developable area of land turned over to the City, once approved.
As an MLA, my two actions would be that already described below related to commissioner’s land, and advocating for faster settlement of the Akaitcho land claim. The land withdrawal associated with this claim has tied up a lot of land within the community boundary which won’t be made available even if commissioner’s land is turned over to the municipality. The sooner this claim is settled, the sooner these lands will be allocated permanently and can be utilized as seen fit by the parties whose jurisdiction they fall under.

I have already committed to advocating for this; it has been in my platform since the beginning of the election, and I advocated for it strongly as a city councillor.

 

3. As an MLA, how do you plan to address and facilitate immigration to our region to promote economic growth and job opportunities?

I would note that the GNWT’s NWT Immigration Strategy finished in 2022. I would expect the department is working on renewing this, and if not, we should ensure that happens, and the new strategy incorporates lessons learned from the associated performance measurement plan.

How will you support the integration of newcomers to our unique northern communities?

Better coordination and information sharing with our federal partners to understand where newcomers are settling, and ensuring they are connected with available settlement and integration supports will be helpful. GNWT should ensure they aren’t doubling services offered by the feds, but if more is determined to be needed, I would be supportive of GNWT providing assistance also. Admittedly, this is something I need to learn more about, as it’s not an area of expertise of mine.

 

4. As MLA, what specific steps will you take to support and strengthen the local/northern construction industry?

One of the primary ways GNWT interacts with this industry is through procurement, and I think we could do a better job of ensuring projects are tendered in such a way that helps to ensure Northern businesses benefit, and northern workforce growth is encouraged. I would advocate that procurement be reviewed and changed to better achieve these goals.
Training and skill development is another factor – we need to encourage and facilitate trades education early on in student’s lives, and ensure our training opportunities and incentives are successful in growing our skilled workforce.

 

5. As MLA, how will you look to leverage remediation projects so that associated jobs, work, contracts and innovation stay in and benefit the NWT?

I agree this needs to be a priority. The above-noted review of procurement should consider the remediation economy also – contracting should be carefully planned to maximize northern benefit and employment as much as possible. A lot of remediation work will require specialized skills – the GNWT should be looking to fund programming at Aurora College, in partnership with other institutions if need be, to facilitate skill development in mining remediation for northern workers. I think a particular focus needs to be put on workers who will be affected by the Diavik closure – if we can ensure continuity for these workers, it will help to cushion the blow from the closure of this mine.

Long-term, I could see mine remediation-related programming being part of offerings at the new polytechnic.

 

6. As we look to diversify the NWT’s economy, what economic growth opportunities to you see inherent in YK’s airport?

Establishment of the revolving fund so the airport is generating its own revenue was a positive development, and seems to already be showing benefits. Airport staff presented to council a few years ago – I appreciated the work and vision they are putting into the airport, I hadn’t thought of it as an economic development tool unto itself until this presentation. I think any MLA should be supportive of initiatives like this which help to expand economic activity in our territory.

I think one of the biggest potential impacts related to the airport could come from extension of the runway to facilitate direct international flights – this could create a big boost for our tourism industry.

Do you think it is time to transition the YK Airport to an airport authority model that allows for greater flexibility to invest in infrastructure, improve services, and manage finances?

Possibly – it could potentially help save GNWT money, which would be positive – it is worth noting these costs would be passed onto passengers however, making it more expensive for people to fly to and from the NWT – I don’t know the level to which this would or would not impact tourism or be another cost factor which residents consider when deciding whether to stay or move here. I would need to know more about this before stating a firm opinion.

 

7. As an MLA, how will you make downtown Yellowknife a more attractive place for tourists to visit and for future business involvement?

One of the primary means by which we can assist with downtown revitalization is ensuring the City is adequately funded – so working to close the municipal funding gap is one item I have committed to. The GNWT just announced a 50-unit housing development on 50th street, which is a great example of partnership between the two governments to positively develop our downtown core, and something I would be supportive of doing more as an MLA. My number one platform priority is housing. I am also supportive of ensuring student housing associated with the new university be built in the downtown core – more people living downtown will help revitalize and enliven the area, and is one of the keys to revitalization.

I am also supportive of the planned development of the wellness and recovery center, something I was also an advocate for on council. I think GNWT Health and Social Services should work with the city at potentially establishing a program which puts social and/or health workers on the streets with peace officers, to help bring services to people, and encourage healthy behaviour and access to services for our vulnerable population.

How do you view the intersection between homelessness and public safety?

Homelessness is associated with numerous significant negative health and safety outcomes, so of course homelessness intersects directly with safety of persons experiencing it more than anyone else.

 

8. As an MLA, what concrete steps will you take to build the collaboration necessary to implement comprehensive solutions to these issues?

When I was first elected to council, MLAs, Council, and NGOs all came together to work on these issues in a cross-jurisdictional committee – I thought this did a great job of highlighting these issues and ensuring a coordinated approach. I could see value in restarting an initiative like this, perhaps as a task force focused on specific outcomes. As a former councillor I will be very interested in collaboration between the YK MLAs and council, and have a strong understanding of what the City needs from GNWT.

What accountability measures will you commit to implement to ensure meaningful action takes place to address these issues?

Answering this comprehensively will be pretty complex – I think we need to understand the various factors contributing to public safety issues downtown and work with the stakeholders involved in implementing solutions to identify measurable outcomes each can work towards as part of the shared vision the Chamber suggests. This is happening for some things (such as implementation of the City’s 10 year plan to end homelessness), but efforts are not nearly as coordinated as they could be, which I think is one of the key problems. We absolutely need to coordinate better – as the Chamber notes in their preamble, development of a shared vision would be a great place to start. I am committed to working collaboratively as an MLA if elected, I think it’s the best way to be successful.

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