Robert C. McLeod

The house is 88, EG 88. It was a research project that’s cost shared between us and CMHC and the goal was actually to see and test all these different components and that to see how they work. So it was a research project is basically what it is. Again, after looking at it in June of next year, we’ll evaluate and see if it’s cost effective to do more projects like this, how we can improve on it, if there’s some things we can adapt from it.

Having worked in the housing field before, I know there are many occasions where they tried new technology and they just go put it into the housing packages...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have with me, to my right, Mr. David Stewart, president and CEO of the NWT Housing Corporation; and to my left I have Mr. Jeff Anderson, vice-president, infrastructure and finance, NWT Housing Corporation.

The Member is right; it is a very simple process and we’ve done our part, the community has done their part. We’re just waiting for federal government approval. Without land tenure, they can’t get a mortgage. The banks won’t touch it and it makes it awful difficult for us too. So, again, just waiting for approval from the federal government. Thank you.

Thank you. I think extensive work has been done on this particular initiative. We do recognize the cost of living across the Northwest Territories. That’s why we’ve broken it down into three different zones. So depending on the zone you live in, it reflects in your rent. We do recognize that seniors are more challenged in some cases than regular public housing clients. So we came up with the $1,000 emption as far as their income goes, because had we not done that, then they would be paying basically the same as other public housing tenants with the same income. So we have taken a lot of other...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. These positions were just brought on board because of the federal investment we had. We had to bring a few more people on board. All that investment, the money is gone now. So there’s really no longer a need for these positions so they’re sunsetted.

We have no records of having talked to people eight or nine months ago. Obviously, I can tell you right now what the answer is going to be. If somebody came up to you and said you’re going to go from zero to paying rent, the answer is going to be no. If you go to those 675 people whose rent is going to drop by $100 or more, if you say are you in favour of your rent dropping by $100 or more, obviously the answer is going to be yes. So the fact that we did not go and talk to these 70 particular individuals, we all know what the answer is going to be. Thank you.

Thank you. I apologize to the Member for overlooking that. We are looking to the hotel tax. We need to develop an option paper for consideration. We’re not quite clear of all municipalities’ and hotel operators’ support. So we are looking at it, Mr. Hawkins. It’s one that if we get the opportunity, we’ll develop an option paper and go from there.

I appreciate the Member’s desire to help. It is, as I responded a couple of times before, an option we are looking at. It has been tried in the past. There are opportunities there for some of our LHOs to get creative. We need to start getting creative in situations.

One of the things we are looking at and I can point out right now, is having people with arrears maybe work with a community group and some of it would count towards their arrears. That way they are more involved with the community. So we are being creative and we are looking at different options. We go back to liabilities. We can...

Yes, Madam Speaker. We will examine it. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have with me to my left Mr. Tom Williams, deputy minister of Municipal and Community Affairs; Ms. Eleanor Young, assistant deputy minister of Municipal and Community Affairs; and Mr. Gary Schauerte, director of corporate services, Municipal and Community Affairs. Thank you.