Iqaluit council rejects renaming sewage lagoon ‘Trump Lake’

NEWS  SEP 23, 2026 – 10:40 AM EDT Iqaluit council rejects renaming sewage lagoon ‘Trump Lake’ Coun. Kim Smith’s motion fails to find seconder Deputy Mayor Kim Smith signals “elbows up” as she calls for Iqaluit to symbolically rename the sewage lagoon “Trump Lake” in dishonour of United States President Donald Trump. Her motion was rejected on Tuesday evening when no councillor seconded. (Photo by Daron Letts) By Daron Letts A call to rename Iqaluit’s sewage lagoon Trump Lake died without a vote after no one seconded deputy Mayor Kim Smith’s motion during Tuesday night’s council meeting. “I figure if (U.S. President Donald Trump) can rename landmarks, then so can we — and we can share a very polite Canadian giggle while we do,” Smith said as she presented her motion, adding no sign would be erected nor any public funds used if the lagoon were to be “symbolically renamed.” Trump has signed executive orders to rename two bodies of water — the Gulf of Mexico in February 2025 and Lake Ontario in August. The new names, Gulf of America and Lake America respectively, are officially changed in the U.S. government’s Geographic Names Information System, and all federal departments and agencies must follow suit. But the change does not apply outside the United States. In her roughly three-minute pitch, Smith expressed her opposition to several of Trump’s actions, including his threats to take over Greenland, the Iran war, and the ongoing trade war with Canada. The U.S. president has repeatedly mused, joked and threatened to make Canada the “51st state,” and his aggressive use of tariffs has caused economic uncertainty across the nation. Coun. Kyle Sheppard was the only other councillor to speak to the motion. He said that while he shares Smith’s “disdain for the current U.S. administration,” he embraced a sentiment expressed in a 2016 campaign speech by former First Lady Michelle Obama: “When they go low, we go high.” Smith told Nunatsiaq News after the meeting she regarded her act “a success” despite the result. “My goal at the end of the day was to let residents know that I am all too aware that they are feeling the squeeze, and to give them something to laugh at when they drive down the causeway,” she said. SHARE THIS STORY Facebook Twitter Instagram (1) Comment: Posted by Huh? on Sep 23, 2026 “Smith told Nunatsiaq News after the meeting she regarded her act “a success” despite the result.“ Huh? 🤣 Reply to this message Join the…