Federal government building 101 homes in Nunavut

$45 million from Rapid Housing Initiative will go towards 7 projects, says minister of housing

Ahmed Hussen, Canada’s minister of housing and diversity and inclusion (bottom) announced Friday that 101 houses will be built in Nunavut with funding from the Rapid Housing Initiative. Pictured also are northern affairs minister Daniel Vandal (upper right) and Lorne Kusugak, the GN minister responsible for the Nunavut Housing Corporation. (Image courtesy of Government of Canada).

By Madalyn Howitt

The federal government is spending $45 million to build 101 permanent affordable housing units in Nunavut through the projects stream of the Rapid Housing Initiative.

Federal Housing Minister Ahmed Hussen made the announcement during a virtual press conference Friday alongside Northern Affairs Minister Daniel Vandal and Lorne Kusugak, the Government of Nunavut’s minister responsible for the Nunavut Housing Corporation. 

“101 homes is a big number for any part of the country but particularly in Nunavut. I know it will make a huge difference,” Hussen said.

In Iqaluit, the funding will support 18 homes in Joamie Court and 33 in Tundra Ridge, two fiveplexes in Hall Beach, one in Kimmirut, three in Naujaat, two in Kugaaruk and two in Pond Inlet

Construction on some of the projects has already begun and in some cases, completed, with  some units already occupied.

Hussen said the Nunavut housing will serve Inuit, with 50 per cent of the units dedicated to women and their children.

“When completed, these units will support people who are vulnerable, including women and children and those who are homeless or who are at risk of becoming homeless,” Hussen said. 

The Rapid Housing Initiative is a $2.5 billion program dedicated to building over 10,000 affordable homes in Canada. 

The $45 million funding is in addition to the Nunavut Housing Corporation’s contribution of $30 million, for a total of $75 million towards seven projects in the territory.

As for a timeline when Nunavummiut can expect to see the new houses, Hussen said it may be around 18 months. The Rapid Housing Initiative usually dictates that homes have to be built within 12 months for people to move in, but because of the unique challenges of building in the North, “we are usually a little bit more flexible with that requirement,” Hussen said.

“With the cost of construction becoming more uncertain, efforts to find further funding become more and more important. We hope this funding signifies the federal government’s continued commitment to housing,” Kusugak said in the virtual media availability.   

In an email to Nunatsiaq News, Nunavut MP Lori Idlout said Friday’s announcement of new housing “should have happened a long time ago.”

“People in my riding of Nunavut are often forced to live in overcrowded, dilapidated houses because of a lack of supply and the high cost of rent. This is negatively impacting people’s physical and mental health,” she said.

She added that her predecessor, former MP Mumilaaq Qaqqaq, released a report last year detailing “the deplorable state of housing in the territory.” 

“Since then, not much has changed,” Idlout said. “This past summer, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. asked for $500 million for housing in Nunavut but the 2021 budget only set aside $25 million.”

“It is essential that the Liberal government listens to housing experts and addresses the severe underfunding of the Rapid Housing Initiative which pits communities against each other for the limited resources available. On top of this, New Democrats will continue to hold the government to their promise of an Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy, something they promised in 2017,” Idlout said.

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(33) Comments:

  1. Posted by Broken Record on

    Unsurprisingly Lori can’t say a single positive word about this.

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    • Posted by 2cents on

      A quagmire of the party system, in Ottawa, NU is doing much better with the consensus model of governing.

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      • Posted by Good point on

        It is hard not to agree, party politics definitely seems to create an adversarial dynamic were Parliamentarians downplay and criticize each reflexively. That’s too bad, from the outside I find it really diminishes them.

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  2. Posted by 867 on

    “People in my riding of Nunavut are often forced to live in overcrowded, dilapidated houses because of a lack of supply and the high cost of rent. This is negatively impacting people’s physical and mental health,” [idlout] said.

    Absolutely right. Building these units is a band-aid but the real problem is teenagers chosing having babies instead of having an education.

    Why aren’t our leaders pointing out that Nunavut’s housing problem will only get better once the teenage pregnancy epidemic in Nunavut slows down? Is it because they don’t want to point out the obvious? Is it because it is taboo? Controversial? At $500,000/public housing unit, overcrowding in Nunavut will never end until the population boom slows down.

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    • Posted by Frankly on

      People and their parentless kids.
      Maybe introduce sex education into the classroom to teach teenagers what their parents can’t teach because they are teenagers yet themselves.
      Simple solution Back in the days we had sex Ed in the class before the rules changed. Now the kids have hierarchy in their schools and now not learning everyday good attitudes but know how to use cell phone only. Along with teacher aides that only stay in their cell phones throughout the classrooms all day.

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    • Posted by In which community are the completed projects on

      Construction on some of the projects has already begun and in some cases, completed, with some units already occupied.

      Please Nunatsiaq can you ask the obvious question – in which community are these completed units? I would very much want to see them.

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    • Posted by Colin on

      867 looking at the bigger picture this is part of one problem, there has been changes here in a very short timeframe from the 50-60s to today there has been incredible change, from Inuit societies to the western/European way. Residential schools, dog slaughters, forced relocations to name a few, the degrading of the Inuit language, our school system failing to teach in Inuktitut and the continuing down this destructive path.
      One of the highest suicide rates in the world, it’s complex and there are a lot of symptoms to a unhealthy society that needs a lot of work and changes made. Our current path is not working.

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  3. Posted by TGC on

    Will that be with or without potable water.

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  4. Posted by Incentives on

    Having babies is the fastest way to get a house in Nunavut. Alternates are to become a security guard or have a medical degree and several years of experience.
    .
    Teenagers in Nunavut are not stupid. They are realistic.
    .
    About 900 babies are being born each year in Nunavut. That means we need much more than 450 new hmes each year, just to not fall further behind.
    .
    101 houses is better than none, but no where close to break even.

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    • Posted by A Clear Example on

      Now this is a clear example of a perverse inventive.

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    • Posted by No baby no house on

      No. Having babies is the only way to get a house in Nunavut. When was the last time a single person without children received a house? I suppose that’s who the few 1 bedroom appartments in Joamie court are for.

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    • Posted by Infinite Life on

      In your projections, don’t forget that along with people being born every year, people also die every year.
      .
      Granted, here in Nunavut about 700 more babies are born every year than people that die. Which is wild.
      .
      Did you know that in the 15-19 year age range, the average birth rate in Canada per 100,000 females is 14.2? Nunavut’s is 111.5. So 1 in every 9 girls in Nunavut between 15-19 will have a baby this year, compared to 1 in every 70 for the rest of Canada.

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  5. Posted by Ian on

    POOR PEOPLE,have babys all over the world,no different in Nunavut,the GN would build more houses if it could.all GN,Housing,Hamlet,employees should be given incentives to move out of public housing,but the same GN,has been a major player in making home ownership beyound peoples reach.almost impossible.and the NHC board are just a group of people without any knowledge of trying to deal with housing.and the private sector to build more housing is pure evil in the GN eyes,keep asking the feds for more money only way,good luck.1 ndp federal seat,but wait we haveNTI,

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  6. Posted by “Looking Thru The SpyGlass on

    Since Our capital will always get first choice and 2 or 3 lefrt-over for rest of Nunavut….so bland and dis Hearting it will be continually trend.

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  7. Posted by Technically on

    Side note for the author… Hall Beach is now Sanirajak. It’s been over 2 years now

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  8. Posted by Reserve for Workers on

    Reserve housing for people who work. Inuit or not, if you work and pay the bill you get a unit. Encourage people to work instead of sit on welfwre

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  9. Posted by 2cents on

    It’d be worth finding out more of how units are constructed in other regions of the Arctic, Greenland for example I have seen photos of apt. block units. Individual and duplex or even town houses have to be more costly. The thing then would be living together as neighbours, you know less partying, quiet time after 9 pm, etc.

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  10. Posted by facts on

    There are about 30 jobs posted in NN today at around 100k + per year. So instead of having kids which supposedly gives you a house. Get an education, get a job and get control of your life forever. It is far less painless to stay in school than to bound to poverty for your entire life.

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    • Posted by Lots of Work on

      The GN actually has over 100 jobs posted on their website.

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      • Posted by Hi SCott on

        Almost all those posted GN jobs require a university degree and several years of experience. And most of those jobs do not come with GN staff housing.
        .
        So, my fellow Inuit:
        1. Take the academic option in high school, even if most of the courses are not offerred in your school.
        2. Do very well in those courses.
        3. Graduate with very high grades, especially in English, Math, Science and Social Studies.
        4. Apply to university down south and get accepted.
        5. Move south, away from friends, family, community and the land you know.
        6. Follow an academic program that will prepare you for a career in Nunavut, such as teaching, nursing, social work, medicine, policy, etc.
        7. Do execptionally well in all your courses. You don’t have to be top in your class, but you do have to be near the top.
        8. Get summer jobs that will help you get full time work in your chosen field.
        9. Graduate from university near the top of your class. (otherwise, the next step is unlikely)
        10. Get an entry level job in your chosen field.
        11. Rent an apartment and do well in your job.
        12. Save your money for two to three years, while you gain experience.
        13. Apply for posted job openings in your field in Nunavut.
        14. Keep working, and be prepared to wait six to nine months to hear from GN Human Resources.
        15. Accept the job offer, when it comes.
        16. Sell your furniture. Sell your car. Sell most of your clothes, sell most of everything else you own.
        17. Say goodbye to the friends you have made during the time you have lived in the south.
        18. If your job offer does not come with housing, move in with your parents, siblings and extended family in Nunavut.
        19. Welcome to reality, Nunavut style.

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        • Posted by Parallels on

          Well damn, the exact same checklist can be used for Non-inuit who want to come to work for the GN. Thanks for sharing.

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        • Posted by You Mean I Have to Work Hard to Get Stuff? on

          Yeah this list is the exact same for pretty much most people in Canada.
          .
          I took all university level math, science, etc courses in high school.
          I graduated with honours.
          I moved away from friends and family to go to post-secondary.
          I took summer jobs to help me in my chosen field, instead of returning back to visit family.
          I graduated with honours.
          I moved away from those friends and further away from family to get my first real job. Had to sell all my stuff.
          I rented a place.
          I saved my money.
          I got a job in Nunavut. Had to sell all my stuff.
          I rented (no staff housing).
          I saved my money.
          I bought a house.
          .
          All told I’ve traveled over 16,000km following my education and career, which is the equivalent of traveling across Canada more than 3 times.
          .
          So I might not be very sympathetic when you can be a Community Health Representative when the “knowledge, skills, and abilities required for this job are usually obtained through a high school diploma or equivalent (GED) and experience working in a northern community”. The bar is low.

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        • Posted by Putting this out there on

          In reality if you are from Nunavut and want one of those jobs a bunch of those steps can be changed

          1. Go to school and listen to what is taught (even if not the right subjects)
          2. work hard and pass those courses.
          3. Graduate.
          4. Apply to university down south and get accepted.
          5. Move south, away from friends, family, community and the land you know.
          6. Follow an academic program that will prepare you for a career in Nunavut, such as teaching, nursing, social work, medicine, policy, etc.
          7. Pass all your courses. You don’t have to be top in your class, you need to pass.
          8. Get summer jobs that will help you get full time work in your chosen field.
          9. Graduate from university.
          10. Get an entry level job in your chosen field with the GN.
          11. Rent an apartment and do your job.
          12. Save your money for two to three years, while you gain experience.
          skip the other steps… show up everyday do your job at an ok level… if that and then save your money until a house becomes available to buy. get GN support (though you still have to fight for it) and make the house better
          19. Welcome to reality, Nunavut style.

  11. Posted by 450 homes per year on

    Really you need 450 new homes per year – so 450 x 500,000.00 + 25,000.00 per year to maintain each of the units. These are published numbers from NHC. But actually the last round of tenders put the cost at over 650,000.00 per unit. Anyhow do the math, I sure as hell can’t without getting heart palpitations. Can someone explain how this can be sustained? And, be all means, to further the unsurmountable situation, discourage any form of development that would provide good paying jobs and royalty revenue. You’re attempting to walk along divergent roads which does not work either.

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  12. Posted by Scott on

    There is over 10,000 young people in Nunavut that will need jobs in the next decade,not to mention houses,no politician anywhere has the answer for this,only answer is move south like the other 10,000 inuit that left.

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    • Posted by 867 on

      There are tons of jobs available, the problem is people want jobs without the required skill sets or they expect paid on-the-job training. Its easy to complain about southerners coming to fill positions, but what you don’t see are the years of blood, sweat and tears that they have endured prior to getting these jobs. What you don’t see is the mountain of debt they’ve accrued to get those degrees. What you don’t see is the hundreds of jobs they might have applied for and the dozens of interviews they might have failed.

      Look at all the vacant nursing positions across Nunavut (which you better believe will include staff housing). Why aren’t Nunavummiut lining up to take Nursing degrees so that in 4 years they will have a guarantee for a rewarding career and housing?

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      • Posted by Clapping on

        Give yourself a nice Pat on the back ?

        It’s nice to hear the simple version of what is wrong with all these teenage mothers and how lazy everyone is instead of just going to school and getting these nice jobs with housing, maybe the silver platter is not shiny enough.

        Wonderful way of seeing things.

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        • Posted by Twerking on

          Less than 100 Inuit in Nunavut have a university degree. Iremember there was maybe one graduate of the arctic college nursing program in ten years. No one who graduated the law school years ago practiced law. No one who did NTEP became a teacher.
          .
          Maybe things are more complicated but I gather you’re in the camp of ‘colonization is the reason things are the way they are’ and ‘white people did this to me’. Am I wrong?

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          • Posted by Tweaking on

            That’s one big part of it, we are still living with this today, I gather you don’t think colonization has very little to do with this? I wonder why that would be?

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  13. Posted by Bob the builder on

    I wonder how much our token Inuit construction companies will rake in to build a few houses?
    I will be surprised if they will actually build 101 homes without going way over budget.

  14. Posted by 1,000,000.00 on

    The NHC tender call which closed this week reveals the per unit cost for this year at approximately 1,000,000.00 each. That is a 2 bedroom, 800 sf apartment in a multiplex. Billions are not going to go very far. Someone had said “unsustainable at 650,000.00 per unit” . What’s this?

    • Posted by Ex contractor on

      1 million for 2 bedroom duplex 800 sq ft over 1200.00 dollars a sq ft three times the cost in the south. Good luck in ever supplying enough housing. Sad

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  15. Posted by A small portion. on

    “When completed, these units will support people …”

    I think they mean these units will support a small amount of people that fall under these circumstances.

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