Chamber of Commerce celebrates 30th anniversary

Surrounded by walls covered in elegant, rippled white drapes, a minimalist but stylish bar, and tall screens and posters projecting the history of the Chamber, current president David J. Pecho recalled the conditions under which it was originally founded in his speech to several members, West Island elected officials, and other guests. "Thirty years ago, some of us were still at school, others were just starting out their careers, and some of us I think were not even born," he said with a laugh. The original Chamber of Commerce was born as a merger of separate two separate chambers in Pointe Claire and Dorval. Remaining West Island municipalities would only join later on, he said.

In an interview with The Chronicle, Pecho said the original Chamber had a mere 20 to 30 corporate members, a far cry from the 500 that make up its ranks today. "I'd like to see it continue to grow," he said, asked about where the Chamber should be in another 30 years.

Former president Marco Del Dotto, who currently serves as member of the board, said it will be important for the Chamber to diversify in the future. "It has to have a lot of different sectors of the economy in the West Island," he said, adding the board should not simply be formed of bankers or lawyers.

In her own speech to the assembled crowd, the Chamber's director-general Andrée Bélanger thanked all past presidents for their presence at the evening. "I truly believe it is our roots, our origins which inform our vision for the future," she said.

Bélanger also praised the hard work of Cinecast, a staging, design and production company which both hosted the event at its warehouse and was in charge of sprucing it up for the soirée. Anthony Castelli, a producer/director with Cinecast, said it was a great honour for him to host the evening for the Chamber.

He added Cinecast uses everything it has got for every single project. "You really have to have a feel for it," he said, adding technical expertise without creativity does not yield good results. "You got to give it everything," he said.