Wild West Express � A Dinner Delegation to Save the Train Station

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Saturday, March 27th, 2010
3:30 PM to 10:00 PM

The Wild West Express is coming to Nanaimo for one night only� and tickets won�t last long!

The Young Professionals of Nanaimo are preparing to take 250 lucky passengers on a special journey back to the 1880�s. The event is part of the ongoing efforts of the YPN to raise $391,000 for the restoration of the historic Nanaimo Train Station. Nanaimo�s station was gutted by fire in the summer of 2007 and since that time has sat empty at 321 Selby Street. The extent of the damage requires that the building be lifted up and the foundation replaced before the exterior walls and roof can be completed.

The total cost of the restoration is estimated at $2.4 million with $1.3 million to be raised for phase one and the remainder for phase two to be covered by a commercial mortgage. Of the $1.3 million needed for phase one, 75% of the funds are in place. $896,000 has come from VIA Rail, $40,000 from the Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association and over $32,000 from the YPN fundraising efforts.

SRY Rail Link, Seaspan Coastal Intermodal and the West Coast Railway Association have teamed up to help by barging 4 vintage passenger cars to Nanaimo for what is being billed as �a dinner delegation to save the train station�.

The Wild West Express will leave Nanaimo at 4:30pm on Saturday, March 27th and will head south to the Cowichan Valley where the dinner delegation will enjoy a special feast at the Quw�utsun� Cultural Centre. /A TV�s Bruce Williams will host the evening which will include food & beverage service, live auction, entertainment and of course an unforgettable ride on the train. Tickets are $200 of which $100 is considered a charitable donation.

Wild West Express tickets are available from [email protected] or by calling Andre Sullivan of the YPN at 250-616-1111.

On March 1st tickets will also be available for purchase in person at the Downtown Nanaimo Business Improvement Association (A10 Victoria Crescent), Fox & Hounds (247 Milton Street), Herold Engineering (3701 Shenton Road) or Integral Wealth Securities (450 Wentworth Street). For more information about this event and the Nanaimo Train Station
Restoration effort please visit www.nanaimotrainstation.org.