The Chamber of Commerce Inc.'s The Neighborhood Business Expo at the Four Points Sheraton in Cranberry has become a popular event that attracts more than a 1,000 people from the area each year.

“Year after year, it grows,” said Shawn Bliss, events coordinator for the Chamber.

Now the event is getting its own spinoff.

The Chamber, which serves north Pittsburgh, northern Allegheny and the Cranberry area, will present the first Community Business Fair from 3 to 7 p.m. today at the Holiday Inn Pittsburgh North on McKnight Road in Ross Township. The fair is free and open to the public. 

Bliss said chamber members were demanding a second business fair to complement the business expo held during the winter in Cranberry. Today's event will be held in the southern part of the Chamber’s territory in the hopes it will attract people who might not make it north for the Cranberry event, Bliss said.

“What we attempt to do is spread out our events over our footprint,” he said.

Fifty businesses from the area will participate in the event, including MacOutfitters and the Beaver Valley Foot Clinic in Cranberry, Eyetique in Wexford and many more. Vendors will give away food samples and promotional items at the fair.

Bliss added it’s an excellent way for people to network in Pittsburgh’s northern communities.

“Basically, you get to meet and mingle with businesses in the area," he said. “We expect 300 to 500 people in attendance.”