Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Apr 28/00) - The somewhat deflated Niven Lake ball is now in the territorial government's court.

Cabinet is currently considering a city request to borrow $3 million, without ratepayer approval, to buy out its private partners in the 350-unit subdivision.

Along with the request, the city asked for a record of decisions made by the government on such requests. City council explained its position to Yellowknife MLAs in a meeting two weeks ago.

There has been only one plebiscite related to the city's involvement in the $25- million project, which began in 1995. In March of that year, city hall held a plebiscite to get ratepayer approval to borrow $125,000 to build a boardwalk and do reclamation work on the lake.

Ratepayers turned down the request by a vote of 189-73, but the city spent the money anyway, taking it from an emergency reserve fund.

Mayor Dave Lovell said the work was required under the city's water licence.

Cabinet will be making a decision on the borrowing request some time next month.

Earlier this week, Yellowknifer asked city MLAs how they felt about the request.

Questions

1. Should the government approve city hall's request to borrow $3 million without ratepayer approval?

2. Should the City of Yellowknife be actively involved in real estate development?

Bill Braden

1. Approving the borrowing seems the best option. If a ratepayer plebiscite was held, and it said no, we could end up in a legal situation that would cost even more money.

2. Our relatively small, volatile real estate market is not stable enough to support exclusively private sector developers. Civic investment helps ensure consistency in land availability.

Sandy Lee

1. My information is the city will be buying out its partners at for considerably less than the total cost of the project. I understand the project will be self-financing. I would expect the minister to be respectful of the city's decision and not unduly interfere.

2. Wherever possible this should be left to the private sector. But my understanding is that the market makes city involvement necessary. I do not have a problem with city involvement as long as the public is consulted adequately.

Charles Dent

1. City councillors are elected to represent and be accountable to their constituents. They should decide how to finance borrowings. A legal agreement requires the city to buy out their partners or face a lawsuit. I think the request should be approved.

2. I suspect we're still too small a community to see the private market completely take over land development. By using the public tender process, the city can ensure that land is available at the least cost in new subdivisions.

Brendan Bell

1. As elected officials, councillors should be able to decide how to finance this development. I am sure they will weigh the interests of ratepayers before making a decision. Since the city is legally obligated to buy out its partners, I think it has little choice.

2. As Yellowknife turns the corner to economic recovery it will need room to grow. We need to attract new families to Yellowknife and if the city can provide developed land at the lowest cost to residents -- it must be involved in development.