Alfred Moses says there will be a replacement of the Riverview Lodge in Hay River within five years.
In response to questions from MLA for Hay River North R.J. Simpson in the legislative assembly Tuesday, the Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation says the plan is to build a replacement of the facility without having to move residents during construction.
“(The) housing corporation plans to construct the replacement seniors complex on existing NWT Housing Corporation’s own land, avoiding the need to displace the current tenants,” Moses says.
The housing corporation owns six vacant lots in Hay River says Moses, including four lots at the ‘Disneyland’ property which he says is ‘earmarked for the replacement of the Riverview Lodge.’ The corporation is also in the process of acquiring more land in the town, ‘land that’s going to help support our capital plans for Hay River’ Moses says.
Simpson also raised the issue of the state of the Hay River highrise and what would happen to renters who are on income assistance and waiting for permanent housing if the building is condemned.
“I think we need to prepare for the worst and it doesn’t sound like there’s actually a concrete plan to deal with the possibility of a lot of these people being essentially homeless if the highrise is forced to shut down.”
Minister Moses says the issue is on the department’s agenda to take a look at and they are working with the new leadership in Hay River to address it.
