by Nancy Gardiner
Northern News Services

NNSL (June 2/97) - Will it be an igloo or Inukshuk? Will it reflect the people it will represent?

Less than two years before division, the design of the new legislative assembly building for Nunavut is still uncertain.

Allan Dobie, project manager for the Nunavut Construction Corporation, says he'd be disappointed if the final design is "a white man's box." He says he believes the architecture should be drawn from Inuit culture.

Dobie says architectural programming for the new building will start this summer, followed by community consultations in the fall. Nunavut-wide community visits will help nail down design criteria.

It is hoped concrete design proposals will be ready by February 1998. Then they'd be taken back to the communities again for review.

There are two sites under consideration, both corner lots, in the downtown area of Iqaluit.

One is beside the Parnaivik building and the other is a lot where there's a group of warehouses.

The proposed sites "are not cast in stone," says Dobie. The town of Iqaluit will have some input on the site chosen as well.