MLA wants GN to assist in replacing Igloolik arena destroyed by fire
Fire marshal, RCMP investigating Feb. 12 blaze; Aggu MLA Joanna Quassa presses minister on government help
Aggu MLA Joanna Quassa says the GN should assist in the building of a new arena in Igloolik after Kipsigak Arena was destroyed by fire last week. She made the case for GN involvement Thursday in the legislative assembly. (Photo by Jeff Pelletier)
A week after a fire destroyed the Kipsigak Arena in Igloolik, Aggu MLA Joanna Quassa is calling on the Government of Nunavut to contribute to building a new facility.
“The arena is absolutely not worth trying to renovate,” Quassa said Thursday in an interview.
“It would be wonderful if [the] GN could contribute to the hamlet’s needs for funding or … whatever resources they may have where they can help the community to rebuild an arena.”
Workers use heavy equipment at the site of the Kipsigak Arena in Igloolik, which was destroyed in a fire Feb. 12. (Photo courtesy of Nunavut RCMP)
Igloolik firefighters spent much of Feb. 12 extinguishing flames at Kipsigak Arena, which also housed Artcirq’s BlackBox Studio.
Nunavut RCMP’s major crimes unit and the territory’s fire marshal announced investigations into the blaze. So far, no cause for the fire has been announced.
Quassa brought the community’s tragedy to the floor of the legislative assembly Thursday, as the winter sitting got underway.
“I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to the hamlet’s fire department team for their efforts to contain the fire,” she said in her member’s statement.
She described the arena as a “safe space” for kids’ recreation, Inuit games and performing arts. Artcirq is a circus program that allows young people the chance to learn acrobatics and performing skills.
Quassa asked Community and Government Services Minister David Joanasie during question period about the fire and whether rebuilding the arena is part of the GN’s plans.
Joanasie said the government is working with the insurance company involved.
He didn’t specifically say whether rebuilding the arena is part of the plan.
“As with other major capital projects, it goes through the cycle of getting considered through planning,” Joanasie said.
“I think with these, we’re treating them on a case-by-case basis on when or how to go about with the capital planning for [an] arena in Igloolik.”
Quassa also pressed Joanasie for an update on the fire marshal’s investigation.
“To date, we haven’t had any information coming from the office of the fire marshal’s investigation into the cause of the fire,” he said.
“I can’t tell you when the office’s report will be completed and shared with the municipality of Igloolik.”
Do municipal buildings not have insurance? Or why is the building not covered by insurance?
Could be one of two things. The first is the Hamlet wants something beyond what the replacement funds from insurance can provide, as in it burnt down why don’t we use the opportunity to build something bigger and better in which case the insurance funds wont go far enough and they need to bridge the gap.
The second and most likely scenario is Hamlet’s usually don’t have enough financial capacity to review replacement costs annually and what this means is buildings are insured well below actual replacement costs. Might take 10M to rebuild but it was insured for 3M.
I doubt it does not have insurance at all since the article suggests they are working at this time with the insurers.
“Quassa asked Community and Government Services Minister David Joanasie during question period about the fire and whether rebuilding the arena is part of the GN’s plans.
Joanasie said the government is working with the INSURANCE COMPANY INVOLVED.”
Too many fires. The GN has to self-insure.
Guess you didn’t read the article?
Anyway, if Joanasie wants this to go through the standard Capital Planning process, Igloolik can expect to wait quite a while for an arena. The 2025-26 Capital Estimates are already done, so there’s no money until at least April 2026. Then, there would be a small amount of funding approved for planning in 2026-27. But they wouldn’t have quality estimates done in time for the 2027-28 fiscal year, so they’re looking at construction funding in 2028-29. In 2028-29, they can get materials on the sealift, but can’t start construction until 2029-30 because of winter setting in. Construction of the arena would then probably take 2 years, 2029-30 and 2030-31.
So, at minimum, I’d say Igloolik can expect to play hockey again in Winter 2031. If everything goes smoothly, which I’d be surprised if it did. Might be before Cambridge Bay’s new arena is ready though.
Where is the insurance? Leave Igloolik incident alone until absolutely insurance is paid to the holder. 20 million range incidents should not be build by GN until full investigation and insurance is paid in full. Goodness; the whole of Nunavut lives on handouts to the beggars.
Ask baffinland for it
Ask QIA for it, they stand to receive close to a billion in royalties from Baffinland, what are they doing with that?
Never mind homelessness, we need a arena:(
Sarcasm noted.🤪
Igloolik has a bright idea of replacing buildings (i.e. Co-op store, C-Hall). Maybe the rest should follow through?
“Want”?
I’m not sure why they can’t wait for the insurance payout. It’s the same situation as when the store burned down in Whale Cove—prices at the temporary store have tripled, even though the Hamlet isn’t charging much for the use of the hall as a store.
The board remains fixated on the idea that they have no choice but to raise grocery prices due to the fire. They insist they won’t receive anything from insurance, which is the same excuse they used in previous years to justify not providing patronage payments to members after the hotel fire!
ask the Hamlet of Cambridge Bay Experts to build it……
oh wait.
As if the community has more important things to report. deal with the insurance first MLA
Nunatsiaq News had an article back in 2017… “In my mind we have reached a crisis point when it comes to insurance and replacing schools,” Peterson said.
This was because the GN had a lot of school fires, thus insurance wasn’t easy to get. Insurance companies, for example, set a $20 million deductible if the school cost $40 million. Meaning the government pays the first $20 million.
What’s the insurance deductible for the Igloolik arena?