Floyd Roland

Thank you, Madam Chair. We haven’t done a review specifically if it’s negotiated contract process or a public tender. As I stated, one of the reasons this is larger than normal is because of the amount of money that was put into the capital plan increased significantly in prior years. Previously our capital plan was targeted at $50 million. We are now targeted at $75 million. So just the volume of capital projects approved has increased significantly as well as the dollars that came through the Northern Strategy trust fund. That is added to that, as well as the federal gas tax contributions...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As I stated earlier, the indication I have, the fire marshal’s office became involved in 2002 and looked at a number of things and looked at the occupancy until 2006, as well as other timelines. So it’s been a number of years. Quite a number of options were looked at. Other options can be re-reviewed.

If we want to go back to the drawing board and try it again, the fact is there is no dollars identified for the Deh Cho Hall right now in the capital plan. Any work to do any improvements or to even look at portable units to put in the community interim, we need the funds...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, later on today I will be tabling the Public Service Annual Report that will give some information on how the work has evolved at this point, not specifically to the amalgamation process, that we are providing some more information on that side of it. Earlier the Member spoke of the employment equity policy. That is not in place yet. We’re still using the affirmative action policy in the work we do, but we are working on a paper to bring forward to Members of this House. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The reason it has come forward this way is, yes, if we have approval of funds in this manner, there will be no other additional costs passed on to the consumer. If we cannot have approval of these funds, the department will have to look at its approved base of operations. If it can’t find it from there, it would have to come back with another fee structure. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have used a number of numbers now, but for the record again, to meet the requirements for occupancy of the existing facility, if the choice was made to renovate, it would be $12 million for the existing facility. To go new for the existing facility, that’s a full amount and I am going to have to double check the square metres for occupancy now. I will have to confirm that with the number I gave earlier. It could possibly be out substantially. The fact is $12 million for a renovation of the existing facility based on 2004 numbers. It is a $20 million renovation…New...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I have already had a number of discussions with my colleagues. More importantly, I have had a discussion within one of the departments that deals with client departments, that being the Department of Public Works, and reviewing why we’ve had such poor responses from some of our projects that we put out there for tender or RFP and having to look at how we can try to increase the competition level or deal with our capital program. One of the issues we have to look at is how our capital program is put together. For example, when a department comes forward for an estimate...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This facility has been discussed, plans have been devised and discussed with the Department of Education, Culture and Employment with the community for quite a few years. As I stated earlier, the fire marshal’s office became involved in 2002. I can say that the departments have bent over backwards trying to accommodate the community. Public Works has revised a number of options, gone back to the drawing board a number of times trying to satisfy the client departments as well as community requests and concerns. We have now come to a stage where we have run out of...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. As the Minister stated in this area, the department had put forward negotiations in the area of over $150,000 anticipated for this. CATSA has come across with their national standard, I guess is the way to look at it, of $22,000. Most other jurisdictions were in the same position to say that is not adequate. The department has done a fair bit of calculations in doing this work. They have used the manufacturer’s technical information to build an estimate of what this would cost. As well, because the footprint is bigger, there is more space to heat and so on. They have...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, as I stated, I guess I would say that as the Government of the Northwest Territories we would not rather bring something like this to the table. But unfortunately, with the work that was done, the process that was used, trying to bring agreement to the table around this facility has ended us in a situation where this needs to get done. A decision had to be made and it is now here at this table for either the endorsement or the House's disagreement with what's being presented.

Yes, it is not a good position to be in and it's not a good position for...

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I already know that the work is not getting done. I’m having to carry this forward to the Assembly with a larger than normal amount in capital carryovers and we’re going to have to deal with that one more in a sense that we have a capital program that has a limit to it and we are now at that limit as we move forward and if projects don’t get done and we can’t find new funds for newer projects, we’re going to have to move forward on that and look at some initiatives of how we exactly do that. Further to that, and that’s something we have to finish here...