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Are we there yet?

After four public consultations, city council may finally be ready to introduce a 20-year general plan

DENISE RIDEOUT

Iqalungmiut crowded into council chambers on Jan. 13 for the fourth public consultation on the city’s general plan.

A city’s general plan is one of its most significant bylaws because it sets out where new housing will go, where government offices and stores will be built and what plots of land should be protected. The 20-year forecast is expected to become law this spring.

Though participants in the latest meeting had many concerns, there were few that hadn’t been previously addressed.

Geetaloo Kakee, a member of the Amarok Hunters and Trappers Association, urged city council to protect areas used for traditional activities such as camping, hunting and snowmobiling.

Iqaluit’s general plan is proposing to do just that. It will restrict development on the area Iqalungmiut refer to as "the land." According to the general plan, the land can be used only for cultural and natural purposes such as camping, hunting and fishing.

Iqaluit’s snowmobile trails will also be protected. If land near a trail is developed, the city will ensure access for snowmobiles is maintained or the trail is re-routed, the plan says.

Kakee also warned city council against building up the waterfront area.

"The hunters like to look at the ocean and the ice to see what the weather is going to be like. So if you’re going to put up houses near there, make sure they are not too high," he said in Inuktitut.

Luckily for hunters, the new plan is proposing to designate a waterfront, or "sijjanga," area. Buildings constructed there can be no more than two storeys high, and large government offices or businesses will be prohibited.

A vibrant downtown

Over the next 20 years, the downtown will remain Iqaluit’s business and employment centre.

The plan proposes that new buildings in the downtown core be "mixed-use," which means there is commercial or office space on the ground floor and apartment units on the upper floors.

West of downtown, the plan proposes creating a "capital district" — a hub of government offices and services located around the Legislative Assembly building. The plan recommends that any new government offices be located in the capital district.

But this idea wasn’t a hit with some participants at the public meeting.

Kenn Harper of Northern Property Real Estate Investment Trust, said he didn’t see the need to cluster all government offices into one area of Iqaluit.

Resident Madeline Redfern agreed. "We already have problems with high-density traffic in that area. This can be seen in rush hours in the morning, afternoon and evening," she said.

Redfern also warned that Iqaluit will not have a very vibrant downtown if everything shuts down when government offices close.

New subdivisions proposed

A major part of the general plan is setting aside more land for homes and apartment buildings.

With the Iqaluit’s population expected to reach more than 10,000 by 2022, the city will need at least 1,700 new housing units in the next 20 years.

The general plan calls for the completion of the Road to Nowhere and the new Lake subdivisions, followed by new development in Apex South and Tundra Valley East.

The second phase of housing development will take place in Quarry Subdivision (along Apex Road) and the area west of Arctic College and Nunavut Power Corp.

Finally, the eastern part of Apex, and the east and west sides of Apex Road will be readied for new housing.

The general plan bylaw will get first reading at city council on Feb. 11.

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