Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’ll have questions to the Minister of Housing. My questions are about the subject of the Sambaa K’e Healing Lodge.
Mr. Speaker, I’ve been informed recently that a deal has been reached with another organization to turn this into a training centre. I’m just trying to get some sense as to what’s actually happening, who will be responsible for the cost of that and who will be the benefactors.
Can the Minister of the NWT Housing Corp tell me exactly who is in control of this now? Are they paying for the full cost of running this facility? Who owns the facility?
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Three questions there. The Minister can answer one or all. The honourable Minister Responsible for Housing, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There’s been an arrangement made with the Mine Training Society. After the first three months, part of the getting-started agreement is going to be covered by us. But after three months they will be covering all the O&M and mortgage costs. We’ve been paying the mortgage to CMHC.
My questions shouldn’t be perceived in any way that I’m against the building actually being dusted off and used. I think it’s a real shame that it’s been empty for so long and probably heated forever at an exorbitant rate.
Mr. Speaker, I want to know: will we retain ownership of this building, or has that been given away in this agreement? If it has been given away, what financial gains has the territorial government made?
Mr. Speaker, this is a lease arrangement. We haven’t reached a point where there’s any proposal before us to actually buy the unit outright.
Has the Department of Housing considered giving it to Aurora College as an asset for them so they can include it in their programming as opposed to just giving it away to an organization?
That facility has been through the government process a number of times, to see if there was any interest within government.
This is the first real deal we’ve been able to sign, and it’s a lease arrangement that has a three-year life which could possibly be extended or evolved into ownership at some point. But we’re very glad to be able to report that we’ve finally got a paying tenant.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Well, again, I state that I’m pleased that it’s going to a training group. I didn’t realize we had so many treatment centres that we had to get rid of one, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I want to know what the total cost has been for the number of years since we had it on the books. What was the total cost to maintain that facility while it’s been empty?
The facility, I believe, has been unoccupied since about 2003 or thereabouts. The O&M costs, I understand, currently are about $70,000 a year, and that doesn’t include the mortgage.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Oral questions, the honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
