Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to point out the dire need for better housing in the community of Wrigley. When I say that housing in Wrigley is inadequate, I am actually agreeing with the NWT Housing Corporation.
A 2014 survey of community housing needs found adequacy problems with 38 percent of the community’s houses. This is worse than any other community in the Northwest Territories. Wrigley is also right down there when it comes to housing and core need; there are problems with adequacy, suitability, or affordability. Almost half of Wrigley’s houses are in core need, 46 percent of them.
I’m sorry to say, by this measure, Wrigley housing is not the worst in our territory but third worst. That is not something to be proud of.
During my recent visit to Wrigley, I heard many complaints about the neglect of housing problems. I heard about homes in disrepair. I heard about problems with mould, residents not being approved for housing assistance, and I heard about construction that was never completed.
When they are so widespread, these problems put stress on the community and everyone who lives there. Housing is critically important to a person’s overall health and well-being. When housing is very bad, there tends to be an impact on both health and education.
People in Wrigley feel their housing needs are neglected by this government. I believe they are right, and I also believe the trend of neglect includes public housing.
In addition to the problems I just noted, as of last year there were only eight public housing units in Wrigley owned by the NWT Housing Corporation. It pains me even more to look at public housing units across Nahendeh. In last year’s annual report, the Housing Corporation reported only 125 public housing in all of Nahendeh. Compare that to 239 units in the Sahtu communities, 498 in the South Slave and 633 in the North Slave. The population differences do not fully account for that kind of disparity. These numbers also show that the problem has been going on for a long time. It takes years to build up a proper housing stock.
I would like to call on the NWT Housing Corporation to evaluate and come up with a plan to address the housing needs of the residents in Wrigley. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.
