Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Jun 13/01) - Tensions are rising between some Ndilo residents and the band council that approved the City of Yellowknife's plan to open up access to the Otto Drive cul-de-sac where they live.
In a press release issued June 6, former MLA and band council member Roy Erasmus accused the current Yellowknives Dene band council of being a dictatorship.
Erasmus had booked the Ndilo gym to hold a public meeting June 5 to discuss plans for the Ndilo side of the cul-de-sac, but Yellowknives Dene Chief Richard Edjericon and Ndilo Chief Peter Liske cancelled the meeting.
Erasmus said he was told that the issue had already been decided through public consulation in 1995 and there was no need for further discussion on the access road.
"There's several of us along that road, but none of us were informed about it (city plans)," Erasmus said.
"Our chiefs have forgotten they were elected by the people and are there to listen to the people, not dictate to them."
"You notice a contrast between the way the city does things and the way council works," said Erasmus. "You can go to council meetings, but the problem is they have their own agenda. It's a small room, so they can say, 'Hey, it's only you (who's complaining).'"
At last Thursday's city public services committee meeting the two sides entered into a bitter confrontation as Erasmus bickered with Edjericon and Liske. Committee chair Ben McDonald had to repeatedly call for decorum.
"Roy doesn't go to our meetings," Liske said. "I know what the needs are, so I'm going to stick to that decision.
"This all started in 1989. It was a safety issue (the construction of the access road)."
Liske explained that it had been the band council and city's intent all along to eventually open up the access road. There was concern that the lone route into Ndilo through Morrison Drive might not suffice in the event of an emergency.
On Jan. 12, 1999 the Yellowknives Dene approved a motion at their council meeting to have the second access road opened up.
The new plan calls for turning the Otto Drive cul-de-sac into a one way access point into Ndilo.
The traffic flow changes are expected to be implemented by Aug. 12, depending on the completion of paving on the city side of the cul-de-sac.
The relatively peaceful side street can expect to see traffic flow increase to 500 vehicles per day.
Erasmus said many of the homes along the road have young families living in them, and only a few hundred meters away sits K'Alemi school, which has no fence around it.
"At least pave this road here," said Harvey Field, who also has a home on the access road. "It's going to be noisy and dangerous."
The paving of the road was another point of contention for Erasmus. He feels the city and band council are acting in bad faith by not extending the paving project into Ndilo.
"The federal government pays hundreds of thousands of dollars in lieu of taxes to the city every year, but there's not going to be any pavement down there," said Erasmus.
But Mayor Gordon Van Tighem said the $200,000 the city receives annually from the federal government for providing services to Ndilo is a drop in the bucket compared to what the city actually spends on the community.
He also said that the city is willing to pave the access road, but ultimately the decision rest with the band council.
"We work as good neighbours and a provider of services," Van Tighem said. "It's their decision."
Liske said he is positive the access road will be upgraded in the near future.
"Signs, paving of roads, those things will be ironed out between the chief and council and the mayor and (city) council."
