First Rural Living Seminar in Rockyview County a Success!

March 21, 2012 - PRLog -- On March 10 the Springbank Heritage Centre in Rockyview County was the scene of the first ever Rural Living Seminar held by the Home Sweet Home Team.  Among these participants were first-time rural residents, long-time rural residents, and people excited to become rural residents.  

The event was organized by Cheryl Trask and the Home Sweet Home Team to provide a higher level of education and information to rural residents around Calgary about day to day maintenance and operation of their property – from septic systems to water systems to county programs available to rural residents.  By acting as a “bridge” to deliver an excess of information from the different levels of government to county residents, hopefully misinformation and unrealistic expectations can be prevented for people moving to rural properties.  

The first speaker for the day was Brandon Leask, Agricultural Water Engineer with Agriculture and Rural Development.  He was able to give an overview of how wells are constructed, common problems for water wells, and maintenance of water wells.  One of Brandon’s largest concerns he hoped to prevent for the seminar participants was when he is visiting rural properties where the lack of maintenance and how the water wells were constructed start leading to water quality issues or well life deterioration.  

The second speaker was Joe Petryk, Senior Field Inspector in Private Sewage Systems with Municipal Affairs.  During Joe’s presentation he gave a great understanding of the approved septic systems in Alberta, septic system maintenance requirements, private sewage regulations, and existing systems.  His presentation was met with an abundance of questions, proving this is a very important topic to rural residents, as well as, an area for misunderstanding.  

To end the day, Tim Dietzler, Fieldman with the County of Rockyview, was able to share information about programs and resources for residents of Rockyview.  Not only did he touch on a lot of pertinent information for residents, but participants were able to leave with printed materials to increase their awareness of these county programs.

An integral part of the day was the trade show component of the Seminar.  Service providers who specialize in rural properties were invited to provide participants with information on their specializations.  Such specializations included excavation and landscaping, septic services, surveyors, appraisers, well drillers, water treatment, home staging, financing, ground water services, and real estate.  These service providers were able to take part and benefit from the presentations.  This interaction created a great venue for networking between participants, between vendors, and among participants and vendors.  

By all accounts, the seminar was deemed a success – by vendors, by participants, and by speakers.  The Home Sweet Home Team are excited to start planning their next seminar for the Fall with more vendors, more topics, and even more information for rural residents.  Stay tuned for details!