Kevin A. Menicoche

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just wanted to follow up on my Member’s statement and the questions in the House of last week with regard to Deh Cho Hall, to the Minister of Public Works and Services. Our government has been on a campaign to reduce, reuse and recycle, and here’s an opportunity to do it with our Deh Cho Hall that’s slated for demolition this coming summer. But I’ve been hearing reports that there may be an environmental report out there saying that all the material is contaminated. Can the Minister tell me if this is true?

I would like to thank the deputy for that answer. I guess the frustration was that taxpayers from throughout the North don’t want to continue to see themselves paying out of their pocket for errors and, for lack of a better word, the situation that we are currently in with the Dehcho Bridge Project. People are still out there; they are absolutely convinced that this cost will not stop here and will be increasing. I don’t know how much assurance that the Minister or the deputy or the Transportation Minister can give us. Yes, we are 50 percent done and with this amended budget we can complete...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I just want to know from the previous item if that information shared with us on the timelines was able to be shared with the public.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just in terms of organizations or myself, contact with Public Works and Services when it comes time to award the contract, who would we contact on behalf of the residents and organizations about material and salvage material for special interest groups? Thank you.

I am glad that something like this can be worked in the terms of reference for demolition of Deh Cho Hall. I’m glad that the department has not made a decision that no material can be salvaged. So once again, perhaps I’ll just ask the Minister what is the timeline for developing the terms of reference for demolition of the Deh Cho Hall.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to speak about the demolition of the Deh Cho Hall in Fort Simpson. This is slated to be done in the summer and completed by the fall time. I have been advised that nothing can be salvaged from the building for community use. Residents of Fort Simpson find that very hard to believe. Why would our government not allow residents and/or organizations an opportunity to use salvageable material for the benefit of residents or their organizations?

Mr. Speaker, I am in favour of coming to some kind of solution that will benefit the community. We have...

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to comment on a couple of things and the Minister will probably correct some of the figures, because I don’t think it’s going to take $32 million to take down two schools, and I’ll wait for the opportunity for him to correct that.

But in terms of the Deh Cho Hall in the community of Fort Simpson, it’s an economic opportunity. That’s the way I see it. I certainly support this line item in the budget. It’s an economic development opportunity for the community. I’ve always said that we’re one of the depressed regions today. There’s work and the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I’m going to continue my statement from Monday and speak about housing problems in Nahendeh. In 2009 the NWT Community Housing Survey confirmed that Nahendeh tops the region with the highest rate of core need at 36 percent. This survey also reveals that 236 houses or 32 percent of total households are inadequate and require major renovation or repair. I am looking forward to seeing repairs completed on both public housing and privately owned housing.

However, in some cases homeowners are in arrears with the NWT Housing Corporation. In many cases it is because they...

No, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Chairman, that is exactly what I was getting at. I certainly support the department in continuing the eventuality, of course, of chipsealing Highway No. 1 up to Fort Simpson. I think that will be a huge achievement for the government to achieve that and, indeed, I have spoken before about achieving as much of a chipseal cover to all our highways as part of our goal, a strategy as one of our goals as the 16th Assembly, Mr. Chairman. I certainly look forward to that plan and to have further discussions about any further chipsealing work that can be done for 2011.

Just in terms of Highway...