The NDP leader is disappointed in the minister of Community Services for not listening to the people of Dawson City earlier this week.

Hardy was referring to Tuesday evening's meeting held by Dawson council to explain the town's current financial position and what the mayor and councillors plan to do about it.

Hardy said in an interview today that for the first part of the meeting, the council and citizens discussed the budget for 2004 and the town's financial position.

Hardy, who made the trip to witness the meeting, said there was a good debate at the session and he believed council had done a good job explaining its position.

'I felt council responded very well to the public,' said the NDP leader. He was impressed council answered so many questions and applauded it for being willing to defend its stances.

After that portion was over, Community Services Minister Glenn Hart stood up to speak. After the debate and discussion that had taken place during the first part of the meeting, Hardy found Hart's performance a contrast to the open conversation.

He said Hart just stood up and read a prepared statement and did not take into consideration any of the comments or discussions heard during the first part of the gathering.

'Though he came to Dawson, he didn't listen,' said Hardy.

Despite the council's explanation of why it was trying to do what it was doing in developing a financial plan to deal with $4.3 million in debt and the potential of shelling out more money from an arbitration hearing that will be settled soon, Hardy said the minister stuck to his script.

'It was a pretty open and blunt threat that you do it our way or you're history,' Hardy said of Hart referring to council.

In his prepared speech, the minister talked about Dawson's debt of $4.3 million, which exceeds the maximum limit set by the territorial Municipal Act.

'The seriousness of Dawson's financial situation should not be underestimated,' Hart stated in the speech.

'The situation is growing more precarious by the day. If Dawson council does not adopt a more prudent financial approach, the appointment of a trustee will be the inevitable consequence, as distasteful as such a move would be to me personally and to my government as a whole.'

A government-appointed trustee would take over control of the town and the elected-council would be disbanded under the Municipal Act, if Hart took that route.

Hardy felt that during the first part of the meeting, council had delivered a hopeful message and Hart completely disregarded that.

The NDP leader said the council showed it was not going to shy away from a difficult situation but was willing to answer questions and face its plight.

Hardy thinks the government should work with the council on this situation and not force the municipal body to operate under a threat of dismissal.

'From my position, I felt, definitely (it is) a council that needs to be worked with, territorially, and supported,' said Hardy.

While the town council was trying to show the community it can fix the situation with its own plan, Hardy said, not everybody supported the council.

'I think there was some very strong concerns expressed by the public.'

Along with the debt, the town may owe more money if an arbitrator rules it should give something back to the construction company that built the town's recreation centre.

The town and the company took their dispute to an arbitrator, and the ruling will probably come out in the next couple of months.

The government is very concerned about what a ruling against the town would do to a financial position that's already mired in red ink.

The town feels that with its financial plan, it can get out of the problem over the next few years, as long as the government hands over the remaining $730,000 in a loan the town already thought had been guaranteed by the previous Liberal regime.

At the meeting, Hardy said, the citizens who expressed an opinion were split. Some were concerned by the government's involvement in the community's affairs, while others felt council is not doing the job well and that the territory should be involved.

See editorial, p. 8.