So I'm looking at the Fort Smith airport surface overlay, and just under the caption there, there's an error, first of all, Fort Prov is a transmission line.
You know how I feel about this. You know, I'm happy that we got the money from the federal government to do this overlay. But there has to be a correction in a wrong that was done to the Fort Smith airport, and I've said this many times in the House ever since I've come. And I think this one here, is this 100 percent federal monies that are going to the overlay? So the territorial government putting zero dollars into this overlay. You know, and -- and yet to ruin the airport in Fort Smith from -- and taking those -- the width away from what it was to put some lights in that, first of all, didn't work, and then -- and now when you have -- you use the excuses also about the snow removal, and then you buy a million-dollar machine to move the snow, and it takes longer now because you got to go in between those little lights I just don't understand how a hundred percent financing to do the overlay, $2.3 million to cut the airport on two sides, and to me, that's a really terrible, wrong decision for the community of Fort Smith.
And every time I get up in this House -- and I've had three Ministers now that I've asked these questions, and during the past election, it certainly wasn't a federal direction. So I mean, the onus is on the Government of the Northwest Territories. And it keeps on as a saga that you do this to a larger regional centre -- and I'm glad you're getting your airport and your longer airport and the international airport thing in Inuvik. I'm proud of that. But yet you do this to a regional centre. I mean, at one time, we were in the running for the capital, you know.
But because we're not -- I guess that was since 1970 or whatever it was, why -- why spoil a -- a really good airport.
You don't do it anywhere else. Are you doing that in Fort Simpson? Are you narrowing it when they're going to put these electrical replacements in? I doubt it. Everybody will be in an uproar.
So it's concerning to me, and I'm going to do a statement tomorrow on this whole issue. You know, logic and reasonable decisions when it comes to communities and regional centres must be made.
I know that wasn't you. it was just before the election. I don't know what was happening with our MLA here at the time. But, you know, this is unacceptable, and it's easy to correct before the overlay is put in place.
We're not asking for the overlay to -- for the whole airport but at least to move those lights out where it should be.
When you're going in there and it's snowing and it's freezing rain on that narrow airport and you're coming down and it's really windy, at some times, I don't even know if we're going to make it. And a couple times we had to fly back here to Yellowknife. And that puts people at risk. There's safety issues.
And I guess that's all I'm going to say for now, because I'm going to do a statement tomorrow on this. And thank you. I just want to know how you're going to fix this, Madam Chair. I want the Minister to answer that question.