Gabriola Roads in the Winter

Have you ever wondered what winter road conditions are like on Gabriola when it snows? Well, I'd have to say that I think we measure up pretty well. It seems as though anytime there is a forecast for snow, Emcon (the company that is responsible for maintaining our roads on Gabriola) recruit their drivers and take their machinery on the road. You'll see them set off to clear the main roads first and then they get busy with the smaller roads. Sometimes they work through the night to ensure that our roads are in as good of condition as possible, of course it's always best to stay home but if you have to venture out it is nice to do so on roads that have been cleared.
Wishing you a perfectly wonderful winter day! This is a picture of the snow falling at the Folklife village last night.

Realtors Safety

I was alarmed to hear of the death of a young Realtor in Victoria, earlier this year. Coming from a small community, we tend to feel very safe in our surroundings; it’s one of the islands attributes that I like best! It’s unfortunate that something so drastic occurred before beginning to review & consider the way we do our business…
Around the office we started discussing safer business practices; meeting with clients at the office, keeping showing hours during daytime, client screening, & accountability measures. On the island, open houses are a rarity so we are blessed not to have the additional safety concerns associated with sitting alone in a home – which I am thankful for.

Today I had the opportunity of taking the SAFER program offered down in Victoria, which provided some additional ideas to Realtors in their day to day practices, focusing on awareness & prevention, we’ll be taking that information, along with researching what is being done for Realtors safety elsewhere throughout BC & abroad, to a newly struck, Realtor Safety, task force & bringing recommendations back for the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board of Directors to consider.

I feel fortunate to belong to part of an organization that cares about its member’s safety!