Community Events: Drive Business Society to Co-host "Green Graffitti" Event on Homelessness

Join us in Vancouver to Launch Green Graffiti for Homelessness Action Week

The Greater Vancouver Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness and the Commercial Drive Business Society will launch Homelessness Action Week 2008 with a special ‘green graffiti’ event on Commercial Drive in Vancouver.

This year, Homelessness Action Week’s participating BC and Yukon municipalities will use ‘green graffiti’ to promote their events for and about people who are homeless – raising awareness, promoting community involvement and addressing solutions.

When: Monday, October 13th at 10:00am

Where: Napier Square Greenway at the entry to the Britannia Community Centre (Commercial Drive at Napier – next to 1105 Commercial Drive)

Who: Alice Sundberg, Co-Chair of the Greater Vancouver Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness and Michelle Barile, Executive Director Commercial Drive Business Society will open the event with short comments.

Contact:

Helesia Luke | Office: 778.786.2838 | Cell: 778.858.0553

Special Event: Food Bank Fundraiser

The Commercial Drive BIA Food Bank fundraising dinner happens on May 15th, 2008 at Federico’s Supper Club. Tickets are $75 per person, with a $50 tax receipt provided, and all net proceeds from ticket sales and the silent auction will be donated to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. In addition to donating to a worthy cause, this is a great opportunity to interact with local community and business members and enjoy a night of exceptional food and music at one of the fantastic restaurant venues on The Drive.

Tickets are available at Britannia Community Centre, as well as at event sponsor locations in the Commercial Drive area: Bank of Montreal, Royal Bank, Scotiabank and Vancity. For more information contact:

Michelle Barile
Executive Director
Commercial Drive
Business Society
Phone: 604-251-2884
Fax: 604-251-2899
E-mail: info@thedrive.ca

Commercial Drive's old street banners get second life as reusable shopping bags!

Almost every year the Commercial Drive Business Society prints 256 32" x 60" nylon street banners which help create a festive, colourful atmosphere for this unique shopping neighbourhood. Eventually each edition of these unique designs must be retired, so rather than sending them to the landfill they've come up with a very green idea — transform them into reusable nylon shopping bags! By converting 2 years worth of old banners rather than using new nylon fabric, this neighbourhood has:

• avoided 7,059 pounds or 3.53 tons of CO2 emissions
• avoided sending 128 kg (281.6 lb) of nylon to the landfill
• saved 25,456,640 BTUs of energy – enough to provide electricity to an average Vancouver home for over 10 months
• freed up 543 trees to capture and store CO2 from other sources for a full year

"This green initiative even goes one step further", explains Ian McSorley, marketing chair for Commercial Drive. "Proceeds from the sale of these shopping bags will be donated to the development of new green spaces in the neighbourhood."

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