No new social housing for Nunavut in 2013 using Ottawa’s money: housing minister

The 2013-14 federal budget said $100 million will be spent in Nunavut over the next two years to build new social housing units, like this 10-plex in Iqaluit. (FILE PHOTO)

No new social housing will be built in Nunavut this year with money from a $100 million fund announced in the last federal budget.

A tender for new housing units, to be built with the $100 million announced in this past March’s federal budget, will go out this fall, Peter Taptuna, the minister responsible for the Nunavut Housing Corp., said May 9 in the Nunavut legislature.

Only site selection will take place in 2013, he said.

That information came after Nunavut MLAs wanted to know how the two-year $100-million housing program in Nunavut would be divided up.

“Communities in Nunavut are experiencing overwhelming housing shortages,” said Tagak Curley, the MLA for Rankin Inlet South, who asked Taptuna for more details on how the new money for social housing would be spent.

Taptuna said $100 million will be spent over two years: $30 million this year and $70 million next year, on a total of 250 units.

“There’s already work being done [on] allocation,” said Taptuna, noting that the units will be built in communities with the greatest need for housing.

But he said he didn’t yet know where the housing would go.

In a response to a question from Curley about how the Nunavut Housing Corp. would get the most out of this money, Taptuna said the “difficulties” that the NHC faced in the past — including huge budget overruns — will be avoided this time.

As for the $100 million, the federal government should approve that allocation by June, Taptuna said.

But Alan Rumbolt, MLA for Hudson Bay, wanted to know how GN plans to spend the $30 million of that amount that’s earmarked for this year if the funding isn’t approved until June, due to the short shipping season.

“We are in discussions with QEC [Quilliq Energy Corp], and hamlets to check for the availability of lots,” Taptuna said.

However, construction won’t start on any new units this year.

And, because of the short shipping and construction season in Nunavut, Taptuna said it’s not possible for all communities to receive housing at the same time.

“Once we get the details from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., the tender for units will go out this fall [for construction],” he said.