Embedded Files
In late September and early October, we reached out to all City Council candidates to ask them 8 questions about their perspective on homelessness in Yellowknife. We also provided context, which is provided lower on the page here, and we recommend that anyone wanting to read the responses of candidate first review the context to best understand candidates responses.
We provided the following context to candidates along with the questions.
1 - A motion made by City Council in June 2025 related to encampments:
WHEREAS all residents of Yellowknife deserve to feel safe in their community; and
WHEREAS encampments with makeshift structures have been established in Yellowknife; and WHEREAS encampments have been established elsewhere within the community; and WHEREAS the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) holds the authority and financial responsibility with respect to housing, social services, and community justice; and WHEREAS there may be public use of alcohol and drugs, drug dealing and vandalism taking place; and
WHEREAS the City of Yellowknife provides support and funding for the Line Drive Outreach Program through financial resources made available from the Government of Canada; and
WHEREAS Yellowknife City Council wants to collaborate with compassion with underhoused and unhoused peoples, and support the GNWT to support both public safety and public health for all Yellowknifers;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT Yellowknife City Council:
1. Direct Administration to bring forward recommendations regarding any existing bylaws that need amendment or new by-laws that need consideration, so that a temporary encampment can be identified, to address unacceptable behaviour;
2. Recommends that the GNWT as the level of government responsible for housing, community justice, and social services, provides oversight of the temporary encampment, including but not limited to ensuring occupant safety, access to basic needs such as potable water, waste removal, porta potties, and other necessities;
3. Recommends that the RCMP increase their foot and bike presence downtown, specifically from 52nd Avenue to Franklin/50th Avenue and from 47th Street to 52nd Street, in recognition of the visible presence of vandalism, public alcohol use, and potential public drug dealing and use;
4. Commits that the City of Yellowknife will support public health and safety of encampment residents at the request of and cost paid for by the GNWT by providing solid waste and sewage collection, as well as enforcing by-laws that reinforce public safety at an encampment between the Legislative Assembly and 48th Street, near the day shelter, as a place that is acceptable for a temporary encampment;
5. Commits that the City of Yellowknife Municipal Enforcement Division will prioritize engagement and visibility in the community, particularly in the downtown core focusing on litter, unsightly lands, and ensuring a safe environment for all.
2 - The City of Yellowknife is the Community Entity (CE) for the federal Reaching Home program in Yellowknife.
Reaching Home: Canada's Homelessness Strategy is the federal government's primary homelessness funding program. The program exists because the federal government recognizes that preventing and reducing homelessness requires coordinated investment in housing, services, data, and community-level systems. Its objective is to help communities prevent and reduce homelessness and improve access to safe, stable and affordable housing.
Rather than the federal government deciding which local organizations receive funding, funding is most often provided through Community Entities, which are responsible for identifying and managing projects based on local needs and priorities. In Yellowknife, the City of Yellowknife is the Community Entity for the Territorial Homelessness stream. The current Reaching Home agreement covers April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2028 and is valued at just under $25 million. The administration of the Reaching Home funding is managed within the Department of Community Services, which exists to enhance quality of life for residents through recreation, culture, events, library services, and the operation of community facilities.
In other communities across Canada, the Reaching Home Community Entity may be the municipality, but it also may be a non-profit organization. This could be a public foundation such as the local United Way or the local community foundation, which are organizations with primary purposes to manage and distribute funds to support organizations, programs, and initiatives that benefit the community. For example, in Nanaimo the Reaching Home Community Entity is United Way British Columbia, and in Kelowna the Reaching Home Community Entity is the Central Okanagan Community Foundation. A Community Entity may also be a direct service organization working in the field of homelessness. For example, in Yukon the Community Entity is the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition, and in Vancouver the Community Entity is Lu’ma Native BCH Housing Society.
As a Community Entity, the City has substantial responsibilities and decision-making authority over the local use of Reaching Home funding. This includes:
Administering the federal funding agreement;
Establishing processes for identifying and assessing projects;
Making the final decisions about which local projects receive funding;
Entering into agreements with funded organizations;
Monitoring funded projects and their progress;
Ensuring funding is used in accordance with federal requirements;
Collecting and reporting information on community-level outcomes; and
Working with the Community Advisory Board (CAB) to discuss and make recommendations regarding homelessness in Yellowknife to bring to Council for approval
From what we gathered online, the City is administering the following funds this year through this program. These funds are provided to local NGOs that run the programs directly.
Housing First for Youth, $393,893
Housing First for Families, $594,893
Housing First for Adults, $569,846
Prevention & Shelter Diversion – Youth, $100,000
Prevention & Shelter Diversion – Families, $100,000
Prevention & Shelter Diversion – Adults, $100,000
Prevention & Shelter Diversion – Seniors, $100,000
Veterans Homelessness Program, $200,000
Special Project, $300,000
Street Outreach Program (“Line Drive Outreach”): $970,213
Total: $3,428,845.00
The City is also responsible for maintaining systems that track and coordinate the community's homelessness response, including Coordinated Access and HIFIS. Coordinated Access is intended to help ensure people experiencing homelessness are assessed and connected to appropriate housing and services through a coordinated community-wide process, while HIFIS is a data system used to collect and manage information about people accessing homelessness services. This means the City has access to information about homelessness and is expected to use that information to help determine priorities, direct funding, and assess whether funded programs are achieving results. According to the City of Yellowknife website, the current plan adopted by the City has the following priorities: Housing services, prevention and shelter diversion, client support services, capital investments, and coordination of resources and data collection.
So through its Community Entity responsibilities, the City is a funder, decision-maker, administrator, planner, data holder, and coordinator within Yellowknife's homelessness response. It has significant responsibility for how federal homelessness investments are directed, how funded projects are monitored, and whether the community's homelessness system is achieving the outcomes those investments are intended to produce.
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