EV students bring focus to ad placements

Students from the East Valley Community Coalition have been studying the placement of alcohol and tobacco ads and products at two local convenience stores.

In a presentation at the Tuesday evening Spokane Valley City Council meeting, the students said the placement of these products in convenience stores often ends up unintentionally targeting very young consumers. 

The students found that alcohol and energy drinks often were placed in the same cooler and come in very similar cans.

“Wine and sports drinks sold from the same cooler is giving the impression that they are the same,” said Siara Rodrigues, 18, a recent graduate from East Valley High School.

They found one store display where Easter candy and alcohol were displayed next to a photo of a local high school wrestling team.

 “This means kids will grow up to associate alcohol with candy and sports and going to high school and being cool,” said Tyler Stewart, 17, a senior at East Valley High School.

The students also noted that most sandwich board and roadside advertising is for alcohol and tobacco products – not for food.

The students said they weren’t criticizing local businesses, they just wanted to bring attention to how much unintentional advertising is aimed at children.

In other news: 

The City Council approved its six-year Transportation Improvement Program, outlining 35 street and traffic projects Spokane Valley plans to complete by 2020.

Projects are funded by more than a dozen different sources, including the Washington state Department of Transportation, Spokane Transit Authority, Community Development Block Grants and Spokane County.

The plan includes upgrades to Argonne Road between Interstate 90 and Trent Avenue, sidewalk projects and pedestrian improvements across the city and resurfacing of Sullivan Road between Sprague and Mission avenues.

Phase three of the Appleway Trail – from Evergreen Road to Corbin Road – is also included, as is phase four, taking the trail from University Road to Balfour Park.

A list of projects, their funding and the proposed time frame for their conclusion is available at www.spokanevalley.org