This is page numbers 3481 - 3522 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.

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Quyananni, Member. Members' statements. Member for Nahendeh.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, William Rowe, no ordinary man with no middle name as he was the middle of Rowe's family. He was born on August 24th, 1931. His mother said she ran out of names and one was good enough. That was Bill, one of a kind but so unique that she would always remember him.

Son to Joseph and Maryanne Rowe, he was a brother to 11 siblings, father to six children, and many grandchildren and great grandchildren. He would always say his best accomplishment was his family.

Bill left home at the age of 17 to find his way in the world. He was fond of mechanics and had become successful as a general contractor and founder of Rowe's Construction and JM Ranch.

On January 28, 1953, Bill married a foxy red, a red fox, Rita Ruth Lockhart and they had many, many adventures for 67 years together. With the passing of Rita, Bill remained strong for the family however he always missed his little red fox.

Bill and Rita spent 30 years in the north, over 40 years in Berwyn, Alberta, where their home was and the place that captured their heart. They would still come north to visit their family and friends throughout this time.

During his service, the family passed on the following message to his neighbours and friends: Their father wanted them to know how much he respected and truly valued their time, friendship throughout his life. Bill lived by the Golden Rule, treat one another as you wish to be treated. He loved to laugh, a beer, and his friends and family.

Madam Speaker, I had the honour knowing Mr. Bill Rowe throughout most of my life, and I can say he did live by his Golden Rule.

Madam Speaker, he will be missed by his children, their spouses, and all their family. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you. Our hearts and prayers are with the family. Members' statements. Returns to oral questions. Recognition of visitors in the gallery. Replies to budget address day 3 of 7. Member for Nunakput.

Mr. Jacobson's Reply
Replies To Budget Address

Page 3488

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today's budget address for Nunakput is -- this is what I'd like to see I guess in our budget if we could do anything, roughly 17 million or 4 percent of the GNWT's capital budget will be spent in Nunakput riding. How much of that operational budget is spent in my riding?

In Nunakput, we are in the High Arctic, the most remote communities, coldest darkest region. They don't have basic services that it can be a matter of survival, Madam Speaker. For instance, just last year in Ulukhaktok when the internet went down and a storm approaching, people couldn't access money to pay for gas, food, and basic supplies. Services with internet services need to be looked at in the communities. Service is essential and critical in my riding, Madam Speaker. They are lacking the basic services. We need improvements to ambulance services. We need improvements to transportation and bus services for the communities. Housing, housing's the biggest concern I have, Madam Speaker, in my riding. It's the health of the residents in our region. It's just overcrowding. We have to fix this issue. We have -- it's so hard on younger families. You know, you have to go live with your parents and you have one bedroom and there's three of you in it, and I have been dealing with constituents like that, and I have a 29 -- I was just told that they're number 29 on the waiting list. That's unacceptable. We have to work together. We can't have lip service no more. We have to work with the Housing Corporation, not just our government. It's our local community governments too. It's our Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Inuvialuit Development Corporation, trying to work with the community corp to try to get houses built. We have to look at a different way. All I hear in this last week I've been here are, you know, our government's broke. We have to look at other avenues to find money. Finding that money is working with outside corporations to provide housing for the people. As long as they could get a long-term lease agreement in place, I'm pretty sure we can go down that road to providing service for our constituents.

When we're reducing our waitlist again, we have to get everything sorted out with our vacancies, housing vacancies, housing improvements, not just waiting for summer. We have to get things done as soon as possible. We can expect our, you know, families are growing, young parents, houses in need, and most of them are major repair, a lot of them. And those houses, we have to address the critical issues.

The critical issues in my riding, again, is housing. We need a business partner. We got to look out and work with the people. The private sector's willing to invest in solutions in my region. It needs to remove the barriers that they create as the Housing Corporation. Businesses need long-term lease commitments and partnerships need solutions in my riding. We need to find ways to take over the mortgages or just give old Housing HAP houses away. You can't pay $140,000 house when you don't even have a flush toilet in some of the communities that we represent. Unacceptable. We need to find ways, again, Madam Speaker, to get rid of the mortgages that don't need and give it away. Take it out of our housing stock, and then we're able to add.

We need to complete community housing plans like I've been working on for Nunakput. We need to get the housing plan set for each community we represent and getting our housing board, not the local housing board but a board that could work with the community corp and liaison in what's needed in that community, especially elders facilities. Because I got an aging population now, in my riding. I got people with dementia that's really -- I have five or six people in one of my communities that I represent that will be getting moved to Inuvik to long term. And soon as that happens, that's no good because you'll never seen them again.

Housing, Madam Speaker, my primary concern in Nunakput.

After housing, the GNWT needs to rethink our mental health supports. We need to do more counselling available. Feet on the ground, people being hired from outside. Don't have to be government people employees. Empower our own people. Send them out for training to get them empowered to help our own. I think that's one of the best things I heard today in one of our meetings. It's always good to hear somebody from the outside but we still have to work together to try, you know, live together. It's not -- we live it every day, Madam Speaker. Any communities we live in.

When I go home, when I leave Yellowknife, we don't have Starbucks or KFC or no essential -- people call it essential. We have a Northern store, Stanton, we're happy with that and we make do. But at the end of the day, we have to provide service.

Like I said earlier today, our government gets $35,000 per year per person, in the Northwest Territories, and not all of them are getting access to that and being served, you know. 130 litres of water a day; they don't get that, because Housing budgets because it's -- it's the local housing authority, you're -- they're budgeting so much because they get so much to provide service and there's only supposed to be so much in that unit but when you're overcrowded because you have nowhere else to go you're going to take them in. That has to be looked at. We have to really take a good hard look at what we're doing here. We need that hands-on approach for, you know, in our riding, our high rates of suicide. That has to be looked at, and I'm really happy to hear that there's places that our Ministers willing to work with to get our young youth help and bring people in to help us in our school and that. And so I'm really looking forward to that.

Madam Speaker, we need to make sure our residents have a house to live in and hope in their lives for a future.

My dad always said, you know, you have a roof overhead and you got food in the fridge and you're capable of working, we got it made. You know, we don't want much. But the housing units that we do have have to be liveable and have to, you know, be there -- we have to be there for the people -- we stand here in the House every time and we get, most of the time we don't get getting lip service. I always say lip service because it sounds good here on TV on the mikes but when it's time to get the work done, we have to really push. But now I know my Minister, the Ministers that I'm working with I know that they want change and I know that they want to do good. So we got 18 months I think left to try to do that, to represent, to get houses, elders facilities, private businesses to come up, and we have to work together for the betterment of the people and making sure that everybody's working together for the common good. And, you know, I just -- in conclusion, Madam Speaker, just the biggest thing is working together, again. Can't say it loud enough. Work together, get it done. No more talking. We got the money there; spend it. And thank you, Madam Speaker.

---Applause

Mr. Jacobson's Reply
Replies To Budget Address

Page 3490

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you. Replies to budget address. Acknowledgements. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, can the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation provide me with some encouragement, and I'd rather hear a "yes", but that her department has a plan for the property previously known as the Disneyland in Hay River?

This land has been sitting vacant for several years and was, as I understand it, to be used for a multi-residential seniors use. And I'd like to see some type of commitment that, you know, at least she'll direct her department to start looking at, you know, a plan to do something with the property. Because if not, let's try and offload it on some private sector that may actually build some houses or build an apartment building. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member. Minister responsible for NWT Housing Corporation.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker, and thank you to the Member for the question. The Housing Corporation intends to use this property for future seniors housing development in Hay River.

I want to assure the Member that the Housing Corporation recognizes the importance of working with community leadership and many housing partners to support the seniors housing needs in your community. The Housing Corporation has taken seniors housing study to help inform future investment and is also in the process of completing a comprehensive technical assessment of the Riverview Lodge seniors complex to plan for its eventual replacement in the near future capital plan.

In addition, the Housing Corporation is working towards the development of a community housing plan in Hay River that will also inform the future housing investment in your community. Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Madam Speaker. And I appreciate the response from the Minister. It just sounds like that it's a long ways down the road. And I hope that's not the case.

Madam Speaker, can the Minister tell me when will the apartment building known as the Hay River Singles be replaced with the new complex? It is aging. I know they do work to it but it's almost as old as me. Thank you.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Based on the current Housing Corporation's unit condition assessment, the corporation anticipates being able to operate this facility for at least another five years. When this facility approaches the end of service of life, the corporation will be considering including the replacement of this asset in a near future capital plan. And I want to assure the Member as well too that, you know, it seems like it's a long time, but also we have to strategically plan when we are replacing these units across the Northwest Territories, and I do realize we have such a huge aging infrastructure across the North. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Madam Speaker. At 65 years old, I don't have much time left. So I want to see something done.

---Laughter

Madam Speaker, can the Minister please explain to this Assembly the process for her department to take over existing vacant federal government houses in Hay River, and throughout the NWT, and if this is something her department's being -- or has been looking at, and if so, what would the use of these buildings be? Thank you

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. And thank you to the Member for that question because we do have a number of federal units across the Northwest Territories that will become vacant and as a housing Minister, I am working with the federal government to acquire those units as well. But as per the federal government's asset disposition policy, notifications on available surplus federal housing units will continue to be issued in the interest group based on priority. This priority is circulated. First, goes to the Indigenous governments, then to the federal government departments, then to the territorial governments, and then finally municipalities informed on the process is available on the Government of Canada's website. Should there be no interest from the noted priority groups, the units will be listed on an open market for private sale. The Housing Corporation will continue to closely monitor availability of the federal housing units in the communities for possible use in our housing programs. Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Madam Speaker. And this final question she'll probably answer in a couple days from now, but can the Minister tell this Assembly how has the objectives and direction of the NWT Housing Corporation shifted over the past two and a half years? What changes have been made, and have those changes shown up in the communities? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I hope that my Minister's statement on the new mandate for the Housing Corporation as a part of the comprehensive renewal strategy helps to answer the Member's question.

The new mandate and the renewal strategy responds to many calls for change in how the corporation does business, including a motion from this Assembly from March of last year. While overall of giving more Northerners have access to urgently needed housing remains the same, our new mandate will make us more effective in getting there. We will be building on some success, including the unprecedent level of new housing deliver currently underway. The new mission, values, and vision will help the corporation to be more effective and to sustain these successes in the near future.

I just also wanted to highlight to the Member that this is the largest housing delivery that the Northwest Territories has seen in decades. And born and raised here in the Northwest Territories and still seeing the Webber units that we are still renting, we try to put those forward and ahead so we could plan for repairs for those units to extend the life of them.

To date, we are going to be receiving 90 units -- a 90-unit delivery throughout the Northwest Territories. And I know this is not going to solve our housing issue, but it's a great start for the Northwest Territories to be accessing these units and for the federal government to come and partner and work with us as well too. We wouldn't be able to deliver these units on our own with the budget that we currently do have. And I just want to thank the federal government for working with the Northwest Territories as we continue to lobby them and recognizing our housing crisis in the territories. Mahsi, Madam Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Great Slave.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3491

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I would also like to ask questions of the Minister of Housing. In the government renewable strategy process that the Housing Corporation is undertaking, how is the government going to work with the private sector to address the skyrocketing cost of housing in the North? Is there is a plan to diversify where those leases are held or to build new housing units? Thank you.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3491

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you, Member. Minister responsible for NWT Housing Corporation.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3491

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The corporation fully complies with the GNWT's policy by utilizing in an open, fair, and transparent public request for proposal process when procuring its leased housing units. These public requests for proposal are open to potential landlords including development corporations and nonprofit organizations. And I just also want to include that since I've had the portfolio that we've strategized on how we are going to be looking at the housing delivery in the territories and I just want the Member to just express to her that I understand that, you know, there's a huge need looking at the leases in the territories but also looking at the limited availability that we have here in Yellowknife as well. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3491

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I appreciate that, but I mean if we have an open RFP process but there's only run landlord, it's pretty much guaranteed where it's going, so kind just a comment.

An issue we hear time and again as MLAs is the lack of land that is available for development in the North. So what is the department and the Minister doing to work with GNWT colleagues on getting that land transferred to the cities or the communities for development? Thank you.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3492

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Just to comment on the question asked previously that the Housing Corporation is interested in if there are additional landlords that out there besides Northview for the Yellowknife area, that I'm interested in having those conversations and really a description of what it is that they can offer the corporation and the territory as a whole. And also specifically to talk about the question in regards to land, I would have to get back to the Member because there is such levels of transfers that need to happen prior to a transaction such as that happening. So I have to get back to the Member. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3492

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yeah, that's fine; I do recognize that it's a complex situation. As I spoke to earlier in this session, constituents want to see social programming available on site in their building such was the model at YWCA's Rockhill House. So is the department working to identify spaces within existing leases and buildings to be used for integrated service delivery and social programming? Thank you.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3492

Paulie Chinna

Paulie Chinna Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I just want to highlight to the Member as well that I will be tabling the strategy for renewal for the Housing Corporation, and we've taken all of the comments that I've heard from the other side and lobbying for housing and to improve the housing programs throughout the Northwest Territories and that we are looking at the reviewing of programs and policies as well, too, and how I can work with my colleagues in delivering those programs to meet the needs of low income housing clients. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3492

The Speaker

The Speaker Lesa Semmler

Thank you. Final supplementary, Member for Great Slave.

Question 926-19(2): Housing
Oral Questions

Page 3492

Katrina Nokleby

Katrina Nokleby Great Slave

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I will also be tabling a document today which has some commitments about availability of social programming for youth so I hope that the Minister will take a look at that.

My last question is that in my riding I have two vacant lots where apartment buildings once stood - Rockhill and Polaris. Both were lost to fire significantly reducing the available units within the city. Is there a plan to rebuild on the GNWT-owned Rockhill lot or to purchase the lot of the former Polaris building for social housing? Thank you, Madam Speaker. Thanks.