N.W.T. government offering rent relief to leaseholders on public land

The government of the Northwest Territories says it will waive $2.7 million in fees for some renters on public land for the 2020-21 fiscal year, due to the economic burdens created by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The government said if people already paid rent that was due during this period and the account is in good standing, the payment will be automatically refunded.

N.W.T. Lands Minister Shane Thompson said the department was hearing about the difficulties people are having during COVID-19, and this was one way his department could help. 

In a news release sent Monday morning, the Department of Lands announced that rent relief would be available to "all holders of existing recreational, residential, and commercial and mining surface dispositions on public land."

A disposition is a land use contract that gives specific rights to a land or resource user. It is "essentially a lease, but also applies to easements and licences of occupation," wrote a department spokesperson in an email. 

"This initiative will leave a little over $2.7 million in the pockets of N.W.T. residents and businesses, and will be implemented later this month," said the release.

Blair Chapman, the Department of Lands assistant deputy minister of operations said the government will forego:

• $504,000 in residential leases.

• $356,000 in recreational leases (including cabins).

• $1,399,000 in commercial mining leases.

• $448,000 in other commercial leases.

The program does not cover any new lease applications received after April 1, 2020. 

According to the release, "surface dispositions" are usually leases, but there are a small number of other types of dispositions that will also be eligible for relief.

Some examples of commercial and industrial leases can include businesses like the diamond mines, small contractors, trucking companies, tour operators, sawmills, fish plants, among others, the release states.

In late April, the territory announced that it was extending and revamping a rent supplement program for residents in private dwellings to try and help them cover any shortfalls due to loss of income during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The program was set to end March 31 but it was extended by five months to Aug. 31.