Tom Beaulieu

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.

The Minister mentions the land claim organizations and the work that goes on there for those negotiations. I'd like to ask the Minister if he could contact those organizations, not necessarily trying to establish a side table, that is not my responsibility or authority, but just to have the discussion on this issue. This is a serious issue, and if individuals want to move forward to fix their units and so on, as I indicated in here, we need to resolve this issue. I would like to know if the Minister would be prepared to talk about this issue specifically with land claim organizations.

Marsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in my Member’s statement I discussed rent that is currently being collected on lots in the Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh riding. I’d like to ask the Minister of Lands questions. Would the Minister be willing to consider adjusting the rent currently charged on land to a reasonable amount, especially for seniors and other people on fixed income? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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...

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...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the Minister for that response. Mr. Speaker, one of the options that may not be apparent to everyone that used to be a fairly standard process was an equity lease process, where the individual ends up owning the land. At this point, since they are renting the land, can the Minister look at something that may be just a little outside of the taxing authority, since they are renting the property and they are not taxing it, if they would look at something like rent-to-own once they have some sort of concurrence from the land claim organizations. Thank...

When the Minister reaches out to the communities and gets community input on what they see as key in their communities for housing programs, how quickly, after that, then, can the Minister make changes to programs so that communities can take advantage of the programs, say, this coming summer?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday I made a Member’s statement on the Housing Needs Survey. I'd like to ask the Minister some follow-up questions. Yesterday I indicated the last survey I had was 2009, but it's actually 2014. There was an update done. The NWT Bureau of Statistics has worked with the NWT Housing Corporation to do a survey on housing. This survey began decades ago, and it's done approximately every five years, most recently in 2014. The survey reports on nationally acceptable indicators such as suitability, adequacy, and affordability. This is how they determine the...

So I take it that if we don't get any money from Ottawa there will be no changes; that's not too good. Will the Minister take a serious look at the sale of public housing as a reduction in core need in the small communities? Thank you.

I was wondering if the Minister is contemplating collecting additional data in a different way in order to supplement the needs survey for future development of programs.