New Yellowknife University in centre square mall instead of tin can hill:

Investing in a university at the old Centre Square Mall addresses a key concern for Yellowknife residents: revitalizing and cleaning up downtown. This approach aligns with public interest, ensuring taxpayer money serves dual purposes—education and community development.

 

Cleaning Up Downtown

 1. Addressing Public Concerns:

 • Downtown Yellowknife has faced challenges such as high vacancy rates, social issues, and an overall decline in vibrancy. Locals have repeatedly voiced the need for investments to improve safety, cleanliness, and activity in the area.

 • Repurposing the Centre Square Mall into a university directly addresses these concerns by introducing a steady flow of students, faculty, and staff who will bring life and activity back to the area.

 2. Increased Foot Traffic and Safety:

 • A university campus would generate daily activity downtown, deterring undesirable behavior through natural surveillance and increased visibility.

 • Students and staff using downtown spaces will encourage businesses and organizations to invest in and maintain cleaner, safer public spaces.

 3. Catalyst for Broader Downtown Renewal:

 • With the university as a new anchor tenant, surrounding businesses will likely see increased demand, leading to growth and job creation.

 • Public and private investment in cleaning, maintaining, and upgrading downtown infrastructure would follow, benefiting all residents.

 

Efficient Use of Taxpayer Dollars

 1. Dual Purpose of Investment:

 • Taxpayer funds spent on a downtown university would not only support education but also directly contribute to urban renewal.

 • This approach avoids the need for separate investments in downtown revitalization and new educational infrastructure, offering significant cost savings.

 2. Long-Term Economic Benefits:

 • A revitalized downtown university would attract students from across the region, leading to increased economic activity as they spend on housing, food, transportation, and entertainment.

 • The economic boost from student and staff activity would generate additional tax revenue, helping to fund future community projects.

 3. Community Buy-In:

 • Locals are more likely to support the use of taxpayer money when they see immediate, tangible benefits, such as a cleaner, safer downtown.

 • A downtown university demonstrates a commitment to solving existing problems while investing in the city’s future.

 

Comparison with Tin Can Hill

 • Taxpayer Concerns on Tin Can Hill:

 • Developing a university on Tin Can Hill would require significant taxpayer investment in new roads, utilities, and public transit infrastructure. These costs would be borne by residents without directly addressing their priorities for downtown improvement.

 • The environmental and social impact of disrupting a natural area could lead to public opposition, making the project politically challenging.

 • Limited Impact on Broader Community:

 • A Tin Can Hill university would not contribute to downtown revitalization or address safety and cleanliness issues. The location’s isolation could limit its benefits to the surrounding community, making it less appealing to taxpayers.

 

Conclusion

 

Funding a university at the old Centre Square Mall aligns with local priorities by addressing the need to clean up and revitalize downtown Yellowknife. This dual-purpose investment ensures taxpayer money serves both educational and community goals, fostering economic growth and improving quality of life for residents.

 

In contrast, a university on Tin Can Hill would require substantial investment in new infrastructure without addressing existing urban challenges, making it a less attractive and effective use of public funds. Transforming the mall into a vibrant campus reflects a forward-thinking, community-driven approach to urban planning and public investment.

Petition Goal: Prioritize Downtown Revitalization and Responsible Spending

 

The goal of this petition is to urge the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) to recognize the concerns of taxpayers who are stressed about the prospect of wasting money on developing a university on Tin Can Hill. Residents have made it clear that they want their hard-earned tax dollars to be spent on fixing downtown Yellowknife—transforming it into a safe, vibrant, and welcoming area once again.

 

Instead of investing in a costly, remote campus on Tin Can Hill, taxpayers would prefer a scaled-down university to be developed in the downtown core. This approach would not only support education but also contribute to cleaning up downtown, addressing pressing social issues, and boosting the local economy. By starting with a smaller, community-focused university downtown, GNWT can ensure that public funds are used wisely and in alignment with the priorities of Yellowknife residents.

 

A Deeper Lense:

Revitalizing Downtown Yellowknife: Restoring Safety and Vibrancy

Downtown Yellowknife was once a vibrant, bustling hub where residents and visitors could safely enjoy local businesses, community events, and public spaces. Over time, however, the area has faced significant challenges, becoming a place many residents avoid due to safety concerns, visible social issues, and economic decline. Taxpayers and residents have consistently called for investment in downtown to make it a safe, welcoming, and lively area once again. Building a university at the old Centre Square Mall offers a unique opportunity to address these concerns while avoiding the waste of public funds on a remote location like Tin Can Hill.

The Decline of Downtown

 1. Economic Downturn:

 • As businesses have closed and storefronts remain vacant, downtown has lost much of its former vibrancy, leaving behind an atmosphere of neglect and inactivity.

 • This decline has created a space where social issues, such as substance abuse and homelessness, are highly visible, further deterring residents from visiting.

 2. Public Safety Concerns:

 • Many Yellowknife residents now view downtown as unsafe, particularly at night, and avoid the area altogether.

 • Issues like loitering, harassment, and crime have become common complaints, eroding the sense of community that downtown once provided.

 3. Residents’ Priorities:

 • Locals have repeatedly voiced their desire for tax dollars to be used to revitalize and clean up downtown, making it a safe, vibrant, and enjoyable place to live, work, and visit.

 • Wasting taxpayer money on developing a university on Tin Can Hill, which does nothing to address downtown’s issues, would be seen as a missed opportunity and a mismanagement of public funds.

 

How a Downtown University Would Help

 1. Incentivizing Action to Address Key Issues:

 • A university at the old Centre Square Mall would force the city to prioritize improvements to safety, cleanliness, and public infrastructure in the downtown core.

 • With students, faculty, and staff regularly accessing the area, the city would need to invest in measures such as increased security, better lighting, and maintenance of public spaces to ensure safety and functionality.

 2. Shifting the Population Mix:

 • A university would transform the demographic makeup of downtown, introducing a population of students, educators, and professionals who bring energy, activity, and positive engagement to the area.

 • This change in population dynamics would naturally discourage negative behavior and improve the overall atmosphere.

 3. Boosting the Local Economy:

 • A university campus would bring consistent foot traffic to downtown, providing much-needed support to local businesses and encouraging the opening of new shops, cafes, and services.

 • The economic revival would contribute to making downtown a more desirable place for all residents, not just university-goers.

 4. A Long-Term Solution:

 • By tying downtown revitalization efforts to the establishment of a university, taxpayer money serves a dual purpose: creating a world-class educational institution while addressing systemic social and economic challenges.

 • The university could also partner with the city to provide social programs, such as counseling services, job training, and community outreach initiatives, to assist vulnerable populations in the area.

 

The Cost of Choosing Tin Can Hill

 • Developing Tin Can Hill for the university would come with significant infrastructure costs, such as building new roads, utilities, and transit systems. These expenses would burden taxpayers without addressing downtown’s pressing issues.

 • A remote campus on Tin Can Hill would fail to address downtown safety and vibrancy, leaving locals feeling ignored and frustrated that their tax dollars were wasted on a project that doesn’t benefit the broader community.

 

Conclusion

 

Taxpayers and residents want to see their money invested in fixing downtown Yellowknife—restoring it to a safe, lively, and welcoming area for everyone. Building a university at the old Centre Square Mall would be a fiscally responsible way to achieve this goal, using public funds to address downtown’s challenges while creating a lasting educational institution. Opting for Tin Can Hill would squander this opportunity, isolating the university’s impact and leaving downtown’s issues unresolved.

 

Challenges of Repurposing the Mall and Expanding the Downtown Campus

While the old Centre Square Mall offers a central location and the potential to revitalize downtown, it comes with significant challenges. Rumors of cockroach infestations and the need for extensive renovations to make the space suitable for a university raise concerns about the feasibility and cost of repurposing the building. Additionally, the university’s size and future growth may necessitate the use of other empty office buildings in the downtown core, creating a dispersed campus model.

 

Renovation Challenges at the Mall

 1. Addressing Health and Safety Concerns:

 • Persistent rumors about cockroach infestations in the Centre Square Mall highlight the need for thorough pest control and cleaning before the building can be transformed into a functional, safe campus.

 • Other potential structural issues, such as outdated HVAC systems, plumbing, and electrical wiring, would need to be inspected and updated to meet modern safety and accessibility standards.

 2. Renovation Costs:

 • Retrofitting the mall to accommodate classrooms, lecture halls, libraries, and labs could require significant investment, particularly in areas like ventilation, technology integration, and ADA compliance.

 • Renovations would also need to ensure the space is visually appealing and conducive to learning, adding to the overall cost.

 

Potential Need for a Dispersed Campus

 1. Utilizing Additional Downtown Buildings:

 • Depending on the university’s size and future growth, the mall alone may not provide sufficient space to house all facilities, such as specialized labs, lecture theaters, or student housing.

 • Expanding into other underutilized office buildings in the downtown core could help accommodate the university’s needs while addressing high vacancy rates in commercial properties.

 2. Benefits of a Dispersed Model:

 • Spreading the campus across multiple downtown locations would integrate the university into the city fabric, encouraging collaboration with local businesses and organizations.

 • A dispersed model could also stimulate economic activity across a wider area, benefiting more businesses and creating a larger impact on the downtown revitalization effort.

 3. Challenges of a Dispersed Model:

 • Managing logistics between multiple buildings, such as transportation for students and faculty, could pose challenges.

 • Renovating additional spaces would add to the overall project cost, though it could still be more affordable than building a new campus from scratch on Tin Can Hill.

 

Conclusion

 

Transforming the old Centre Square Mall into a university campus will require substantial renovations and investment to address health, safety, and functional concerns. While the mall itself may not be large enough to house all university facilities, utilizing other empty office spaces in the downtown core presents an opportunity to create a vibrant, integrated campus model that revitalizes the broader downtown area. Despite these challenges, the downtown location remains a better option than Tin Can Hill, where new construction costs and isolated development would fail to address the community’s need for a revitalized, safe city center.

Cabin Radio has reported on this at the following links:

https://cabinradio.ca/97380/news/yellowknife/which-campus-sites-did-the-gnwt-reject-before-choosing-tin-can-hill/​

https://cabinradio.ca/7721/news/yellowknife/build-university-in-centre-square-mall-says-yellowknife-mla/