The Gabriola Chamber of Commerce marks National Chamber of Commerce Week
Monday, Feb. 20 marks the beginning of Chamber of Commerce Week 2012. Chambers of Commerce stimulate local economies, direct community promotion and engage in multi-level advocacy which benefits the entire province.
Chambers of Commerce also support businesses through joint advertising, benefit programs, services and education. Being community based means that chambers are funded entirely by their members, events and sponsorship. This community investment is what drives Chambers of Commerce to directly support and stimulate local economies, and work collaboratively to create vibrant communities around the province.
The Gabriola Chamber of Commerce is currently working on several projects that are important to our community. Chamber President Ken Wur, along with representatives of the Ratepayers Association and Gabriola Transportation, recently met with two key staff members of the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. Discussed was the urgent need for the painting of both centre and outside lines on Gabriola’s roads.
The Gabriola representatives also outlined to MOTI the need to improve safety in the Village Core as a priority. The options of adding or moving the location of crosswalks, installing stop signs or considering the creation of roundabouts were discussed in detail. The Gabriola representatives will further analyze these options in preparation for a followup meeting with MOTI.
Further to the chamber’s plan to assist in moving forward on items that had been put forward by Sustainable Gabriola last year, representatives from the chamber and Sustainable Gabriola met to discuss specific strategies. The group began by outlining in detail the community-based approach it will use in planning for a sustainable Village Core.
The Gabriola Chamber operates the Visitor Centre at Twin Beaches and produces the most widely distributed tourism brochure from Gabriola, GoGabriola. Thirty thousand copies are distributed to over 120 locations across B.C. and into Alberta and Washington state.