Details on the building of a new correctional centre remain cloudy and the public has the right to know what's going on, said the NDP's justice critic.

Steve Cardiff, the Mount Lorne MLA and NDP justice critic, said Tuesday he's looking for details on one of the largest construction projects scheduled for the territory.

'This year's budget includes $3.24 million for design work on a replacement for the antiquated Whitehorse Correctional Centre (WCC), but the minister (Marion Horne) has been completely silent on how this project is coming along,' Cardiff said.

'By now, there should have been at least a Request for Proposals issued, but there's been nothing.

'The corrections centre is long overdue. This is about the safety of the staff, the inmate and the public.'

Cardiff said he is afraid the jail could turn into another Watson Lake health centre, where contracts for the facility were sole-sourced and the work over-budget and delayed.

'These guys (Yukon Party ministers) basically cancelled the (WCC) project 4 1/2 years ago saying we're not building a warehouse.

'They chose a design concept back in May. They've got a design and a location.

'What kind of bidding are they using? Have any contracts have been issued?'

Cardiff said he'd also like to know if the Kwanlin Dun First Nation (KDFN) has been involved in the planning process as promised, and if the government is willing to guarantee the facility would not be built using a public/private partnership model.

Horne could not be reached for comment on the jail plans.

Michael Cowper, senior project manager with the Department of Highways and Public Works' building development branch, said Tuesday there are two active contracts on WCC planning.

One contract, worth $20,000, was sole-sourced to Victoria-based Matrix Planning Associates to review program documents generated in previous planning processes and develop and analyze four design concepts. That contract was issued in September 2006.

The other contract, originally worth $25,000, was sole-sourced last March 19 to a Vancouver company, DGBK Architects, he said.

The contract, to provide consulting services and a feasiblity study for option number four developed by Matrix, received an addtional $11,000 and was extended in May.

Both firms, Cowper added, were involved in previous jail planning before it was put on hold.

The jail, according to Department of Justice spokesman Chris Beacom, currently has 53 corrections officers on staff for 77 inmates.

He said the capacity of the jail, which opened in 1967, is approximately 80 inmates.

KDFN chief Mike Smith could not be reached for comment.