By Ali Siemens (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: March 7, 2012
CIVL Radio has been working towards a stronger visual presence in the Abbotsford community with the help of UFV students. UFV’s campus radio station held a bus advertisement design contest in recent weeks. The station asked for submissions from students and community for a design that would be displayed on the side of three Trans-Link buses in Abbotsford.
CIVL received the news that they have successfully completed the minimum requirements for the broadcasting tests of Industry Canada. Now that the final test period is complete, they are in the process of applying for a permanent broadcasting license. This allows for a stronger push to have their voices heard in the community.
Aaron Levy, station manager at CIVL, happily announced that the station “will be broadcasting, which we pretty much have been for the past two weeks now, out into Langley and Aldergrove reaching more into the Fraser Valley for the first time.”
The broadcasting tests were to ensure 101.7 FM didn’t interfere with any other stations or police scanners, and with lots of hard work, CIVL passed the test.
With a more permanent link to the CRTC, the Canadian Radio Telecommunications Commission, CIVL also wants to work towards making a stronger link with the Fraser Valley community, both UFV students and community members off campus. Levy reiterated that the bus advertisement contest was just another way to have the community at large involved.
“We don’t get any money out of this, we are looking at it as we want to help and sustain ourselves by raising our profile in the community with these advertisements,” stated Levy.
Levy also mentioned that CIVL was able to take advantage of their status as a non-profit organization allowing them to receive a slightly lower rate for advertising.
The promotions committee spent the morning of Saturday, March 3, deliberating on the multiple submissions made to CIVL, and ultimately deciding who was the winner of the contest. Levy noted that after an hour, the team reached a decision and the winner is UFV student Brian Kavanagh. Following the specific requirements, Kavanagh submitted a design that will fill 30-inches by 139-inches of space on the side of three Abbotsford buses.
As a community radio station, CIVL 101.7 is trying to include the community in all areas. By holding a community wide contest and trying to extend their reach further into the community, they hope to soon find themselves playing over local venue speakers as well. Levy also mentioned the hopes to have the advertising contest to coincide with CIVL’s upcoming referendum happening at the end of March, hopefully bringing more attention to the radio station as a whole and their request for an increased budget.
