It could be as few as two or three weeks before something concrete is known about the construction of the multimillion-dollar athletes' village for the 2007 Canada Winter Games.

Host society president Piers McDonald said in an interview Thursday there are still different options being considered, though each choice calls for a start date in this coming construction season.

All the options are also built on the premise of a 100,000-square-foot facility located somewhere on the Yukon College grounds, he pointed out.

The former NDP government leader said the master plan estimates the cost at $10 million to $11 million.

The Games will run Feb. 24-March 10, 2007. They'll involve 3,600 athletes, managers and coaches in two waves of approximately 1,800 the first week and another 1,800 the second week.

The host society put out a request for proposals to see if there was any interest from the private sector to finance and fabricate the village in a modular-type of fashion that could be disassembled after the Games and sold off.

McDonald said the society did not received any solid expressions of interest but did attract what he described as partial suggestions.

The society is in discussions with the Yukon government and the city to determine if they have any need for the modular type of units after the Games, and if they'd be interested in providing upfront financing, he said. The society itself has a budget of $2.7 million for the village.

Final design, McDonald explained, will be influenced by what end-use is identified for the village components.

A college site being talked about is the area immediately behind the Yukon Arts Centre, across from the gymnasium. One concept shows a cluster of six modular-type residences with sleeping quarters jutting out from a central hub, like spokes on a wheel.

It has been suggested that a couple of units might by used as additional space for the arts centre, and to fulfill a requirement by the college for additional student residence accommodations.

There has also been a proposal that the modular units could be designed in such a fashion that if a unit was heading to a rural community after the Games to serve as a nurses' quarters, for instance, any specific needs like provisions for plumbing could be built in during fabrication.

It has also been stated the society's objective is to maximize local involvement in the village's construction.

With fewer than two years before the host society wants to take possession of the village, time is tight, McDonald acknowledged.

'We have a lot of good people working in key positions,' said the society president. 'I am still pretty confident we can do this, including the design and fabrication of these units.

'We do not have a lot of extra time but we have significant time to do what we need to do, in my view.'

McDonald said he could not be more specific about a deadline to make a selection from the different options, as the project schedules are currently being developed for the each option.

'What we do know is we want to take possession of the village in November or December 2006.'

The bulk of the Games' financing is coming from a federal government commitment of $20 million, and an estimated $10 million from the territorial government.

A sprawling multiplex is being built beside the aquatic centre to accommodate many of the Games events.

That facility is expected to open this fall.