Debates of August 16, 2007 (day 11)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier today I was reading my Member’s statement and I was starting to wonder, is the MACA department standing in the way of accessible lots and, therefore, affordable housing here in the city of Yellowknife. Mr. Speaker, I have to try to figure out why the Minister of MACA has refused to allow the application to come forward by the City of Yellowknife to go to the public process, the interim measures agreement. So, Mr. Speaker, maybe the Minister can help explain to this House and to the City of Yellowknife where the transparent process has gone and why he refused to allow it to go to a public hearing like every other piece of land should go through? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.

Return To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can’t understand why the Member would stand up and say that MACA is standing in the way of transferring land. I think historically this government has gone on record for transferring large parcels of land over the last while.

---Applause

This last land acquisition request that has come forward contains land that we don’t have jurisdiction over and, therefore, can’t disclose that. If we can’t disclose of it, it doesn’t make any sense to go to consultation, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Well, Mr. Speaker, the land request that came in a couple of years ago was cut in half by this department and once they came up with an agreement with the local folks, the aboriginal folks, they could have just, therefore, transferred the rest of it. But, no, they shelved it and sent it back and said apply some other day. Mr. Speaker, at the City of Yellowknife, the land cupboard is bare. They do not have lots available for affordable housing, Mr. Speaker. It is a very bare cupboard, but it’s just not that long ago we gave MACA six more positions to deal with land transfers specifically. So, Mr. Speaker, I’d like the MACA Minister to illustrate today to this House what these people are doing, because I’m kind of concerned because we do not have land being transferred over to the City of Yellowknife. Is he padding his department? You know, what are they doing over there? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the land request from the city, if the Member had checked, would indicate that there is privately held land in the acquisition request. I’ll have to check to see if the Member’s property is included in there.

---Laughter

Mr. Speaker, there’s bodies of water that we don’t have jurisdiction over. There’s federal lands that we don’t have jurisdiction over. We can’t pretend that we’re going to transfer these over; we can’t take it to consultation. We have been talking to the city for I think around three months now to see if we can work our way around it. We’ll either have to carve these properties out of there to take the rest to consultation or the city will have to change their request, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’m not sure where the Minister is getting his briefing notes, but I did check the land and, by the way, I got the information from your department. So you can make all the funny jokes you want; this is from your office. So, Mr. Speaker, in February 2007, the city expressed interest in reviewing options for purchasing the Con and the Rycon trailer courts. In July 2007, the city passed a motion to acquire the common areas of the trailer court and recommended MACA should offer fee-simple title to the existing leaseholders to them directly. So where is this process going forward, Mr. Speaker? What are we doing again? Stall, stall, stall while affordable housing solutions don’t get done? Mr. Speaker, what is this Minister doing to solve this problem?

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish the Member would read his information more closely because, Mr. Speaker, we’ve indicated to the city if there is a real desire for us to transfer to the city, we can do it within four weeks or a month turnaround. If there’s a desire for us to turn the land over to the leaseholders, that’s going to be a new consultation process and that would probably not be finalized until December or January this coming winter, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Final supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.

Supplementary To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, I think the Minister just accurately coined out the problem because the fact is, he’s come up with a new process for land that’s already been requested and already been approved because, Mr. Speaker, it wasn’t that long ago that the City of Yellowknife applied for that area of land and it was okay because it went through the IMA, no applications came in from a third party interest to stop it. So the fact is, it was already heading over to the side of the City of Yellowknife with no problem, but yet the MACA Minister slows it down. It’s still going to the same people, Mr. Speaker. The MACA Minister could do this today; the MACA Minister could solve this problem today. Maybe if he’d look and talk to his colleague sitting right next to him, that’s also the area of the city he represents. So maybe he would want to work together more closely in this Assembly to solve these problems. Will he do this today? He can do it today. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Mr. McLeod.

Further Return To Question 134-15(6): Land Transfer Process

Mr. Speaker, we’ve been working close with everybody. My office has even kept the Member in the loop. We have indicated that we’ll transfer the land to the city. We’ve done the consultation; we have all the necessary requirements for us to start that process today. If the transfer is going to be to anyone else other than the city, then that changes the land tenure and that would require us to go through another consultation process, Mr. Speaker. That is the process and I apologize to the Member if he misunderstood that, but the process is right now that we go to a new consultation process if there is anyone else in the city other than the city that applies for it. Thank you.