Published 12:20 pm Wednesday, July 29, 2026 The federal government and GNWT announced two funding agreements on July 27 for a total of $655 million, which should help fund 560 NWT affordable housing units by 2030, as well as new post-secondary, housing and health infrastructure in the next decade. Both agreements were announced at the Yellowknife site of the former Hilltop Apartments, which is being prepared for redevelopment. NWT MP Rebecca Alty, GNWT Housing Minister Lucy Kuptana and GNWT Health and Social Services Minister Lesa Semmler delivered the news. The first announcement was an “agreement in principle” between the territory and federal agency Build Canada Homes (BCH), to support the creation of at least 560 affordable housing units, through a combined investment of $480 million. BCH is set to pay $200 million, the GNWT $190 million and $90.5 million will come from “other funding sources, including private capital.” That will fund at least 380 social housing units, approximately 130 affordable units and 50 transitional or supportive units, which will hopefully be completed by 2030, Kuptana said. A total of 132 of those units are currently in development “at various stages of delivery,” according to a Housing NWT spokesperson. The spokesperson also said that “a portion” of the GNWT’s share of the new funding agreement is coming from its existing $150-million, three-year housing plan, but did not clarify how much. At least $75 million of the BCH funding will go to projects serving Indigenous communities, or projects run by or in partnership with Indigenous organizations, said Alty, who is also minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations. “Today, we take another important step towards building a Canada that’s stronger, more prosperous and more resilient, not just for today, but for generations to come,” she said. These new builds will be in addition to other GNWT and federal funded housing projects, including 64 transitional and social units in Yellowknife, 40 new homes in Inuvik and repairs to 150 social housing units across the NWT. Combined, the federal and territorial governments have now committed to supporting 818 new or repaired homes across the territory. A March GNWT report found that the territory has a housing deficit of between 1,750 and 2,700 units. The second agreement announced on July 28 was through the federal Build Communities Strong Fund (BCSF). It should see the territory receive $82.4 million for infrastructure related to housing and post-secondary education over 10 years, and $74.5 million in health infrastructure funding over three years. “As we all know, building homes is only part of the equation,” said Alty. “Growing communities also need to build and improve the infrastructure that supports families and businesses every day.” Some of that funding will be used by Housing NWT to work with communities and Indigenous governments on removing derelict housing and preparing their sites for new development. Which specific healthcare projects will be funded has not yet been decided, but Semmler said she’s proposed a list of projects, prioritizing “care closer to home.” They include new health cabins in six small communities across the territory, expanding CT scan services in Inuvik, establishing an MRI service in Yellowknife, upgrades to the Fort Macpherson health centre and more. Semmler said there’s no timeline yet for when projects will be approved, but that “there is an urgent need” for healthcare infrastructure. She said she hopes the decisions will be made in the next few months, due to the limited three-year window to spend the money. “The Build Canada Homes and Build Community Strong Funding allows us to continue delivering housing and infrastructure at a greater scale for years to come,” said Kuptana. “[It’s] really important that we all work together because we can’t do this alone. “While today’s announcement is significant, we know more work remains,” she added. Separate from the new agreements, the NWT is also set to receive $18.7 million through the BCSF in 2026-2027.
GNWT, feds announce funding for 560 new homes, alongside $157M for infrastructure projects
