Richard Froese
South Peace News
Big Lakes County will provide space in its main building in-kind to allow an agricultural extension agency to access local producers.
At its regular meeting April 12, council approved a motion to provide Peace Country Beef and Forage Association (PCBFA) in-kind space in a small board room.
The space will be used for the Fairview-based association to provide professional services to Big Lakes residents about six times a year, says Brett Hawken, director of community and protective services.
PCBFA previously used office space provided to it in the Provincial Building in High Prairie by the Agricultural Financial Services Corporation (AFSC).
“But they lost access to this space a few years ago which resulted in a loss of opportunity to readily provide in-person services to our county producers,” Hawken says.
PCBFA extension staff e-mailed Big Lakes agricultural fieldperson Dylan Fath on Feb. 16 to inquire about the possibility of meeting space in the county administration building.
At its regular meeting Feb. 23, the Agricultural Service Board approved a recommendation to council to provide space.
A PCBFA staff member says the organization would need a meeting room to meet with two to five producers at a time, Hawken says.
They would utilize the room for most of the day with multiple consultations to best utilize the time and space since the staff member would drive from Fairview.
The PCBFA plans to set a regular schedule of when it will be in High Prairie, such as the second Tuesday every second month, Hawken says.
He notes the space is not a condition of the County’s funding commitment to the group.
“The County has no obligation to provide additional space to the PCBFA as part of our yearly $30,000 grants,” Hawken says.
Administration has not received the same request from Smoky Applied Research and Demonstration Association based in Falher, which receives annual funding of $30,000 from Big Lakes.