Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I’d like to speak about the situation taking place at Northland Trailer Park located here in the city of Yellowknife. Northland Trailer Park is home to 1,100 people, including close to 600 children. The issue of the aging water and sewer infrastructure is again front and centre as the trailer park continues to battle frozen lines and freeze-ups.
For the last three weeks some residents have gone with intermittent water service; water a couple of hours a day with no set schedule. The water has been out for some for a full week. This has taken a toll on its residents. Like I said, there are close to 600 children in that trailer park. There are day homes, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, and families trying their best to cope with a life with no water.
The infrastructure in the ground should have been replaced 15 years ago. Last year the City and territorial government applied for funding from the federal government. Well, who is applying the pressure in Ottawa to get that funding? The thought of a spring federal election is making the residents of Northland Trailer Park very nervous. The infrastructure has to be replaced this coming summer. Our government might not think it’s their problem, but if there’s a catastrophic water or sewer line failure in that trailer park, we will have close to 1,100 people, 600 children, being displaced from their homes. It will become our problem.
Residents of Northland can’t even sell their homes because CMHC stopped insuring mortgage loans for homes in the park almost a year ago. To add insult to injury, residents are paying property taxes on their properties, but what is the assessed value of something you can’t sell? When Northland residents see how quick the City is to jump at the Con Geothermal Project, trying to borrow $49 million and grab the available federal dollars, just how do you explain this to people who are living without a basic service like water and can’t sell or refinance their home?
In closing, this issue has got to be addressed. We cannot continue to just hope that there is not a catastrophic failure of that water and sewer line. The breaks are occurring with much more frequency, which comes as a sure sign that a catastrophic break is not far off.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.
