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OregonLive.com VIDEO: Knitters attempt to break Guinness World Record at Oregon Convention Center

Knitters attempt to break Guinness World Record

Oregonian: Elks club members serve as an economic stimulus in Portland

by Molly Hottle, The Oregonian
Monday July 06, 2009, 7:33 PM

An estimated 10,000 Elks club members in Portland for a national convention are wasting no time helping the local economy.

"Everyone is telling each other about the restaurants," said Rick Gathen of New Jersey, a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks for 16 years. "I've been to the last 14 conventions, and this is the host city that is the friendliest and the most eager to please."

City officials expect members attending the 145th Elks National Convention, which began Sunday at the Oregon Convention Center, and their families to spend $5 million during the five-day event...

Read more at OregonLive.com >

Oregon Convention Center 2008 Annual Report

"The Oregon Convention Center produced record revenues and made major strides in leading the green meeting industry in 2008. In fiscal year 2007-08, OCC generated, through enterprise services, $16,862,000 in revenue with an economic impact of $441,512,000 for the tri-county region. Each year, the Oregon Convention Center supports roughly 4,800 jobs as a result of our conventions and meetings business,confirming year in and year out, the return on investment made by Oregonians twenty years ago..."

» Download the Oregon Convention Center 2008 Annual Report

» Get the Adobe Reader

"The Oregon Convention Center produced record revenues and made major strides in leading the green meeting industry in 2008. In fiscal year 2007-08, OCC generated, through enterprise services, $16,862,000 in revenue with an economic impact of $441,512,000 for the tri-county region. Each year, the Oregon Convention Center supports roughly 4,800 jobs as a result of our conventions and meetings business,confirming year in and year out, the return on investment made by Oregonians twenty years ago..."

» Download the Oregon Convention Center 2008 Annual Report

» Get the Adobe Reader

Post-event effort delivers over 20,000 pounds of food donations to the Oregon Food Bank

Communication and cooperation between the convention center, show management and a local charity results in a highly successful donation effort and landfill diversion.

The DPI Specialty Food Show recently partnered with the Oregon Food Bank and the Oregon Convention Center to help reduce the amount of food waste bound for the landfill and donate quality food products to organizations feeding the hungry in our community. With the show management initiative and coordination, as well as the assistance of staff from the OFB and the OCC, more than 35 pallets of food -- a total of 20,614 pounds -- was collected and donated to St. Vincent de Paul. Donated food included items such as specialty cheeses, meats, breads, packaged meals, cakes, sauces, and fish.

According to Hilary Eyres of the Oregon Food Bank, food shows of similar size generally generate 8,500 to 10,000 pounds of donations. "I was anticipating a 50-75% increase in donated product, but we more than doubled what we normally average at food shows.”

Pre-event communication between DPI, OFB and OCC helped to coordinate logistics ahead of time. In addition, information was included in vendor packets and at the pre-show vendor meetings. OFB representatives visited vendor booths shortly before the close of the show, encouraging them to bring donated items to pallet stations or to leave items at their booths with “FOOD BANK” signs attached. DPI staff, OFB volunteers and OCC staff also helped to box and gather donated food. Food that was not able to be donated -- displays, samples or opened packages -- was composted.

All agreed that it was the pre-planning and commitment of all three parties that made the collection effort so successful.

"The OCC crew was extremely helpful after the show - collecting compostable items and donations left on booth tables," said Brittin Witzenburg, OCC's Sustainability Coordinator. "It took a well-coordinated effort to capture this much for the Oregon Food Bank, and I appreciated everyone’s participation and enthusiasm."

Oregon Food Bank recovers food from farmers, manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, individuals and government sources. It then distributes that food to 20 regional food banks across Oregon. Sixteen are independent charitable organizations. OFB directly operates the four regional food banks serving the Portland metro area, Tillamook and southeast Oregon. Those four centers distribute food weekly to more than 340 food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and other programs helping low-income individuals in Clackamas, Clark, Multnomah, Washington, Tillamook, Malheur and Harney counties.

Contact:
Brittin Witzenburg
Sustainability Coordinator
Oregon Convention Center
503.731.7949
BrittinWitzenburg@oregoncc.org

Oregon Convention Center making "mooves" to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Next time you walk down Oregon Convention Center's Ginkoberry Lane you’ll probably notice an attractive bovine grazing across from our Sustainability Wall. Don’t worry - she hasn’t lost her way from the farm. She’s sharing the climate change story with everyone who passes by.

In partnership with NW Natural, the OCC will permanently house the art cow display, highlighting our participation in the Smart Energy program. Starting January 1, 2009 the OCC began offsetting 100% of the carbon emissions from its natural gas use through the Smart Energy program. The program is designed to support projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These projects include a biodigester at a farm in Boardman, Oregon, that captures methane gas from cow manure and keeps it out of the atmosphere, where it is a 21 times more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. The captured methane will be used on‐site as a renewable energy source. The OCC’s participation in the Smart Energy program helps reduce the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere and supports renewable energy development in our state.

Feel free to pay our new friend a visit and learn a little more about climate change. Just another way OCC is practicing sustainability.

“Fight global warming, one cow pie at a time.”

For more information on Oregon Convention Center's sustainable practices and client options, contact Brittin Witzenburg, Sustainability Coordinator, at 503.731.7949, or by email BrittinWitzenburg@oregoncc.org.

Travel Portland Launches Green Meetings Toolkit

Travel Portland, with assistance from Meeting Strategies Worldwide, an award-winning environmental firm specializing in the meetings industry, recently launched an online Green Meetings Toolkit. Designed to assist planners interested in creating more sutainable events, the website contains tips, resources, interactive maps, links to experts, even a carbon calculator. Best of all, even though the website highlights Portland as a meeting locale, much of the information it contains can be applied easily to other destinations.

The toolkit opens with an overview of information on Portland, including venues, transportation, attractions, dining and pre-/post-tour ideas. All of the suggested businesses and tours are highlighted on interactive maps that link toGoSeePortland.com, a social-networking website on which planners will find ratings and reviews posted by various travelers to Portland.

The toolkit’s homepage also gives planners the option of submitting green-meetings questions to experts, filling out an RFP, and "running the numbers" on Meeting Strategies Worldwide’s MeetGreen calculator.

Because Travel Portland wants everyone to meet green (even if they aren’t meeting in Portland), the website links to such green-meeting resources as the Green Meeting Industry Council, Convene Green and the Convention Industry Council’s Green Meetings Report, as well as to blogs hosted by The Green Meeting, Green Events Source and others.

For more information on the Green Meetings Toolkit or meeting green in Portland, visit www.greenmeetings.travelportland.com.

Travel Portland is the official destination marketing organization for the city of Portland, Oregon. Its mission is to strengthen the local economy by marketing the Greater Portland region as a preferred destination for meetings, conventions and leisure travel. For more information on Travel Portland, visit www.travelportland.com.

Oregon Convention Center completes Phase II of a facility-wide restroom fixture retrofit and expects significant water and cost savings

The Oregon Convention Center recently completed Phase II of their restroom retrofit to the original portion of the building to low flow water fixtures. Phase I was completed March 2007 and included the replacement of 92 women’s restroom toilets from 3.5 gallon per flush to 1.6 gallon per flush toilets with Sloan Uppercut dual flush valves. The Sloan dual flush valves allow the user to choose between a 1.6 gallon flush for solid waste or 1.1 gallon per flush for liquid waste. Total annual water usage for the original portion of the building showed a 20% decrease between 2006 and 2008.

Phase II of the original restroom retrofit was completed at the beginning of February 2009. This phase included the replacement of 46 men’s restroom 3.5 gallon per flush toilets and manual flush valves with 1.6 gallon per flush Kohler toilets and Sloan ECOS automatic dual flush valves. The Sloan ECOS hands free flush valve allows either a 1.1 gallon reduced flush or a 1.6 gallon flush based on the whether the user is present for a minute or more and is expected to save water by 54% with each use. 

Sixty-two of the original 1.5 gallon per flush urinals were replaced with 1.0 gallon per flush Kohler urinals and Sloan G2 Optima Plus hands-free flush valves. The new urinals and valves are expected to demonstrate a water savings of 33% per use. In the men’s and women’s restrooms, 106 of the original sinks were retrofitted with Sloan Optima senor activated faucets. Sensor activated faucets save water by turning off when the user’s hands are moved away. In addition, the faucets use an aerator with a 0.5 gallon per minute flow rate.

The restroom fixtures were from the original facility construction. Over time, water fixtures age and the likelihood of undetected leaks increase. Upgrading the restroom fixtures to current water efficient technology is expected to bring significant water and cost savings, and has been demonstrated following Phase I of the project. All porcelain and metal removed from the project was recycled through our waste hauler. 

Contact:
Brittin Witzenburg
Sustainability Coordinator
Oregon Convention Center
503.731.7949
BrittinWitzenburg@oregoncc.org

OREGON CONVENTION CENTER JOINS CLEAN ENERGY OFFSET PROGRAM

Investing in biogas development is the latest effort by the Pacific Northwest’s largest meeting facility to reduce its carbon footprint.

PORTLAND, Ore. - Feb. 17, 2009. You won’t see any cows roaming around the Oregon Convention Center (OCC), but bovine do play a big part in helping the meeting facility improve its carbon footprint.

The OCC, the Pacific Northwest’s largest convention facility, has selected to participate in the Smart Energy program from its natural gas supplier, NW Natural, to offset the natural gas usage at its building. With more than 1 million square feet of meeting and banquet space, the OCC is one of NW Natural’s largest participating customers in the program.

"We were looking for carbon offset opportunities," said Ryan Thorpe, OCC’s director of operations. "Smart Energy is compelling and different. It’s an integral part of our plan to move forward and keep pushing the envelope with our sustainable practices. We also liked the fact that it is local and through our natural gas provider. Most convention centers don’t have that opportunity."

Smart Energy is designed to support projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These projects include a biodigester at a farm in Boardman, Ore., that captures methane gas from cow manure and keeps it out of the atmosphere, where it is a 21 times more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. The biodigester is expected to be up and running in March 2009 and the captured methane will be used on-site as a renewable energy source.

Paying a little extra each month to participate in Smart Energy is only part of the OCC’s sustainable leadership plan. The center earned a LEED-EB rating in the Existing Building category in 2004, and in 2008 was the first convention center in the country to recertify at a higher LEED-EB silver rating. In addition, other green measures include providing sustainability stations where meeting-goers can easily recycle, serving locally-grown food, using bulk containers for condiments and composting food waste.

"The Oregon Convention Center’s leadership holds the same values of caring for the community and environment as NW Natural," said NW Natural’s Bill Edmonds, Director of Environmental Policy and Sustainability. "We’re proud to be partnering with them in this innovative program."

Thanks to participants like the OCC, Smart Energy offset 14,000 tons of carbon dioxide in 2008 - the equivalent of 1.4 million gallons of gasoline.

About NW Natural’s Smart Energy Program
NW Natural is headquartered in Portland, Ore., and serves about 655,000 residential and business customers in Oregon and Southwest Washington. It is the largest independent natural gas utility in the Pacific Northwest and is one of the fastest-growing local distribution companies in the nation.

NW Natural does not profit from funds raised through Smart Energy. The money will be used to fund greenhouse gas reduction projects, to educate customers about the program, and for the administration of the project through The Climate Trust, a leading non-profit organization and one of the largest institutional purchasers of offsets in the United States. The Climate Trust, which will manage the Smart Energy funds, supports innovative strategies to reduce, avoid or capture global warming emissions.

NW Natural is offsetting the carbon dioxide emissions created by the natural gas used to heat all its facilities for the next five years, totaling a reduction of 700 tons of carbon dioxide.  NW Natural shareholders are also paying nearly a quarter of the program costs. 

For more information about the Smart Energy program, visit nwnatural.com.

Contact:
Jenna Cooper-Gross, NW Natural, (503) 721-2440, jcg@nwnatural.com
Ryan Thorpe, Oregon Convention Center, (503) 731-7872, ryanthorpe@oregoncc.org

Follow the Oregon Convention Center on Twitter!

Twitter is a service that allows people to stay connected with friends, associates, businesses and organizations through the exchange of short status updates. It allows you to let your circle of "followers" know everything you’re up to, and keep up with those you "follow" - via the Web, your favorite newsreader or your mobile device.

Twitter asks its users to answer the question, "What are you doing?" If you're looking for something to do in Portland, you should follow the OCC. We share updates on what is happening at the convention center, and we’re happy to answer any questions you may have.

Already using Twitter? Follow us @oregoncc.

You may also want to follow our friends at Travel Portland, too! @travelportland.

Want to learn more about one of the fastest-growing networks on the Web? Watch this short video:

A Holiday Message from your friends at the OCC!