Thank you, Madam Chair. I would just like to clarify, my apologies to the Member, that I was looking at the program delivery that we have within the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation, and this is actually our community housing services. My apologies. I'm going to have Mr. Carpenter elaborate on this because it actually has to do with our department. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Debates of March 11th, 2020
This is page numbers 607 - 658 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was housing.
Topics
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Carpenter
Thank you, Madam Chair. The rent supplement leasing refers to units that we rent off private developers, that we utilize as public housing. We own a majority of our units in our public housing program, but we still, for the major centres where we require more units, actively rent those units. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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Steve Norn Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh
Thank you, Madam Chair. What I'm hearing right now still is that this is mainly a Yellowknife program. Was there still access for people in the regional centres and the smaller communities for this program? Is a lot of this money being used for those areas?
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.
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Paulie Chinna Sahtu
Thank you, Madam Chair. I hope I can clarify this for the Member, but I just want to give a really strong example. We have limited public housing units available throughout the Northwest Territories, so the Housing Corporation actually leases out of private markets. We do have apartments that are within an apartment building, and the Housing Corporation leases a bunch of those apartment buildings within that from a private owner. We lease those out as public housing units. For an example, just to elaborate, two more seconds, is that, if we're in an apartment building and the person rents at $2,500, they could be downstairs paying $70 because it's a Housing Corporation unit. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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Frieda Martselos Thebacha
Thank you, Madam Chair. First of all, I want to make a statement on housing. Housing is probably the most critical thing in the Northwest Territories, as an issue. I want clarification on co-investment fund for partnerships. Could you clarify that, if a partnership is like the Salt River First Nation or the Fort Smith Metis Nation and if they went and put a proposal together, Madam Chair, would they be entitled to the co-investment fund if they wanted to build, say, 10 units for their membership? I just want clarification on that, please.
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.
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Paulie Chinna Sahtu
Madam Chair, yes, that is correct. If the Salt River wanted to put forward an application for the co-investment fund, that is correct. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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Frieda Martselos Thebacha
I also, Madam Chair, would like to ask a question on the home ownership program. The lease-to-own, how do they determine the assessment, the value of the actual home ownership program, on the assessment value of the municipality? How is that determined if an individual wants to enter into the home ownership program? Thank you, Madam Chair.
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation.
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Paulie Chinna Sahtu
Thank you, Madam Chair. I will have Mr. Carpenter elaborate on the home ownership program as it does come with it certain deals, I guess. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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Carpenter
Thank you, Madam Chair. As part of our objective to get more people into private home ownership, we've got this initiative called the lease-to-own. We're going to make available our detached inventory of public housing units, available to tenants who have steady and stable incomes, who want to enter into home ownership. The way we assess the value is we have an internal assessment calculator that we use. It's largely based on the age of the unit. Our inventory is, as many may know, fairly aged, so the value of these units is commonly not very high. We would also apply current programming to that to assist these tenants to become homeowners. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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Frieda Martselos Thebacha
I also want to have clarification on the RCMP units that are being allocated for the community of Fort Smith. Are they going to be demolished, or are they going to be going into other lots? Because the units are in good condition, and I would like to see the units, if they come under the Housing Corporation or the housing authority or whatever way they are going to dispense of these units, that they are divided between the Fort Smith Metis Nation and the Salt River First Nation because, in the rental units, they are mostly Indigenous.
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for NWT Housing Corporation.
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Paulie Chinna Sahtu
Thank you, Madam Chair. In regards to the old RCMP units that are there, they do have their own procurement process that they follow. I just want to elaborate a little bit that we did have some units that went up for sale in Norman Wells, but they ended up going over to the Indigenous groups. I'm not too sure what their process would be. I wouldn't be able to speak to it. I'm not too sure what their plans are for the older units. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Thank you, Minister. I'm just going to clarify. The RCMP units, it's a different item, just because we're talking about the community housing. If there are further questions on the RCMP housing, is it under the programs and district operations. Can the Minister clarify? Minister.
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Paulie Chinna Sahtu
It is not identified in our main estimates because it is a federal program that is coming forward. Going forward, we will be identifying them because the Housing Corporation would be the department that would be administering them. Thank you, Madam Chair.
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The Chair Lesa Semmler
Just to clarify, the RCMP are not in our main estimates. Member for Thebacha, do you have any further questions?
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Frieda Martselos Thebacha
I am very much about accountability and transparency, and I want to just ensure, Madam Chair, that, with the local housing authority, that we ensure the needs of the community, and service from management at the local housing authority is that they serve the public, and I want to ensure, Madam Chair, that all the programs and services that are offered by the local housing authority should be advertised.