Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have questions for the Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation based on her Minister's statement on market housing for community staff. The modular homes are not an acceptable method of delivering market housing in the community where it has been delivered in Tu Nedhe before, in Fort Resolution. I would like to know if the Minister has done any sort of consultation with the communities on modular versus stick-built in the communities. Thank you.
Masi. Minster responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The NWT Housing Corporation did put all of these proposals for housing out to tender. Northern companies applied on them and were awarded, so it is northern companies that are actually bringing in these modular homes, and there was a significant savings compared to the stick-built proposals that were received. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
So no consultation with the communities. The Minister is aware that the Housing Corporation has a program where they provide some money to private developers: so many dollars per unit to put market housing units on the ground. At this point, that number is too low to spur developers to construct some units. Would the Minister, in the savings of 30 per cent that she indicated, with respect to modular homes versus stick-built, consider looking at increasing the amount given to private developers to allow them to put market housing units on the ground in the communities? Increasing the subsidy to 30 per cent of the maximum unit cost might be an example.
The NWT Housing Corporation currently uses the BIP program to consider, which gives points. I'm sorry, I've lost the question. Sorry, Mr. Speaker.
My question was that there is a program in place now that gives incentives to developers to put market housing units on the ground. The incentives are $25,000 in some regions, and $50,000 in other regions. I'm asking the Minister if she would continue to look at stick-built instead of bringing modular homes -- For that 30 per cent savings for modular homes, provide a subsidy of 30 per cent to private developers and have them stick build units in those communities.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do apologize. Still I'm suffering from the flu so my brain is a little bit foggy still. The NWT Housing Corporation did try to increase it. It started at $25,000. It was increased to $50,000 to try to get more northern businesses. We still didn't have enough uptake with even increasing it to $50,000. Currently, though, we are negotiating. We are talking with northern manufacturing firms to see if we can get them within the next request for proposals that are coming out in the spring. We're trying to get them to actually be able to come forward and actually be more competitive in their pricing.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the bottom line here is that when you bring in modular homes you're not hiring local people to do construction. The communities need jobs. We're trying to bring market houses in so we can attract people into the community to work, but the communities themselves don't have jobs. When we have an opportunity to build something in the community, to allow other people to come into the community and have jobs, why would the Housing Corporation take the strong position that it has to be modular homes in order to save 30 per cent when the more important factor is that communities needs jobs? Will the Minister consult with the communities that are affected to ensure that they support modular homes before they proceed any further? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The reason that we took in the modular homes is because there was a 30 per cent savings by doing this, and that was looked at by doing the averaging of the proposals that came to us. We have 800 people on our wait list for public housing that are actually homeless and sleeping on people's couches. If we can save 30 per cent that's huge, to be able to transfer that over. The statement that it takes away jobs; there are still jobs. It's northern firms that bring the mobile units up. It's northern people that are used to put the units in. It's northern labour that's used to maintain these units.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nahendeh.
