[Coco] 2023 CoCoFEST! Venue Considerations

[Glenside President (Jim Brain)]

https://www.glensideccc.com/2023-cocofest-venue-considerations (includes 
pictures)

As most of you are aware, our 2022 CoCoFEST! utilized the Holiday Inn 
Elk Grove Village location. Fewer may also be aware that the venue 
changed ownership a mere 2 weeks before our May event. As is normal, we 
paid our 2022 venue rental bill at the end of the show and sat down to 
sign the 2023 rental agreement. However, the venue stated they wanted to 
wait a few weeks as they were in the process of validating pricing and 
such. Grant Leighty, CoCoFEST! coordinator, and I, agreed, but I 
stipulated we needed to lock in our April 22/23 dates so we did not lose 
them in the meantime. The venue agreed.

A few weeks later, we received the updated rental contract from the 
venue and were shocked that the 2023 rates were considerably more than 
in the past. After Grant verified the pricing was not a clerical 
mistake, we discussed options. We knew rental rates would be climbing 
given all of the changes happening, but we felt the new pricing was 
unrealistic, so we started checking pricing at other venues to better 
manage expectations. To put things in perspective, we paid approximately 
$0.38/sq ft while while in Lombard (Heron Point), and that number moved 
to $0.53/sq ft while at Elk Grove Village (Holiday Inn). For 2023, we 
would be asked to pay approximately $4.50/sq ft for the same amenities.

After checking a number of venues in the approximate area, we firmly 
believe the Elk Grove Village rates are unrealistic. That said, it’s 
also probably unrealistic of the club to expect pre-COVID pricing to 
continue. To use the same comparison, other venues in the area are 
quoting rates from $0.80/sq ft to over $1.62/sq ft, and those quotes 
don’t include all costs, like tax, service fees, beverage costs, etc. 
Therefore, we do need to adjust what we consider normal in 2023 and beyond.

Another concern is venue size and location. Taking size first, we’ve 
outgrown the 2100 sq ft main hall of Heron Point, while we don’t quite 
fill the Holiday Inn’s 4559 sq ft main hall (but there’s room to grow). 
Ideally, we need about 3-4K sq ft for the main exhibit hall, and 
600-1200 sq ft for the presentation/auction room. Grant looked at a 
number of venues, and the locations mostly seem to be much smaller 
(Heron Point size) or much larger (Clarion Inn size, where VCF-Midwest 
is held).

Consider Clarion Inn, for example. Tony Podraza, Grant, and I chatted 
with the venue coordinator in person last weekend, and here’s some 
things he wanted us to consider:

  * The main venue hall is 4 3000 sq ft sections, for 12000 sq ft in
    total (not including the huge foyer and the massive side hallway.
  * The venue really doesn’t have a way to sub-divide the 3000 sq ft
    sections into smaller chunks. He suggested a pole and a curtain, but
    that’s not sound dampening.
  * 3000 sq ft is a bit tight for our main venue needs (as noted above,
    it’d be OK for now, but offers little room for incremental show growth)
  * To organize the show at this location, we’d need 2 of the 4 3000sq
    ft sections (one for exhibit and one for presentations)
  * On principle, the venue does not rent to dissimilar groups on a
    given weekend. So, even though we don’t need the entire venue, they
    would not consider renting the remaining space out to someone else
    unless that other group is very similar to ours (another computer
    club or a game club, etc.)
  * They have a minimum charge out rate for the entire space for the
    weekend.

So, though we only need 4-5K of space, we’d need to pay the minimum full 
venue rate for the weekend, and that rate changes depending on the date. 
The coordinator noted that during the wedding season, he doesn’t rent 
out the facility for less than $30K/weekend (which gives you an idea of 
wedding costs). Mind you, the rate quoted to us was much lower, but we’d 
need to steer clear of wedding season. Guess where the normal CoCoFEST! 
dates are located?

On the other hand, Grant found a few venues that were eager to work with 
us, but they only have 2000 sq ft of conference room space. We simply 
can no longer fit into that small a venue. It’s a shame, too, as the 
coordinators seem very flexible and ready to customize things to fit our 
budget and needs.

Location is another concern. Besides the obvious location concerns (a 
preference for locations near O’Hare and not in high crime areas), some 
of the venue were just hard to get to. One sits at the corner of two 
main freeways, and just driving to the venue required extreme diligence 
to not miss the turn or be in the wrong lane. For years, we’ve enjoyed 
easy access to the venue. Heron Point was at the corner of Interstate 
355 and North Avenue, but about the only tricky part was getting to the 
parking lot from the East on off North Avenue, and most folks figure out 
the shortcut by cutting through the Heron Point parking lot from the 
East entrance. Elk Grove Village was likewise pretty easy to navigate.

I don’t want to discount other considerations, like quality, 
cleanliness, and number of hotel rooms, venue loading/unloading options, 
on site food, etc. But, the size concern alone shortened the list 
considerably.

We’d love feedback on the possibility of holding the 2023 show at the 
Holiday Inn Carol Stream: 
(https://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/carol-stream/csril/hoteldetail/events-facilities#). 
We felt the venue aligned well with our needs:

  * 3840 sq ft in the main hall. It’s slightly smaller than the Elk
    Grove Village main hall, but not overly so.
  * 675 sq ft presentation/auction room right across the main hallway.
  * bonus (storage) room that can easily be used for staff seating
    and/or registration
  * Easy access. Large well maintained parking lot, no interstate
    off-ramps or other strange transportation concerns.
  * Travel time very similar to the Elk Grove location from all
    directions and
  * Close to familiar sights. Remember Heron Point? From I-355, go 5
    miles west on North Avenue instead of turning East.
  * On site restaurant (Burger Theory:
    https://www.burgertheorycarolstream.com/)
  * Portillo’s is 1.1mile away :-)
  * Easy loading and unloading option through double doors right outside
    main hall
  * Additional rooms available for breakouts or other uses (for
    additional fees, of course)
  * Our preferred April 22/23 2023 dates are available, and no premium
    rates to leverage them
  * Recently renovated

As noted, Grant is discussing venue costs with the location. The initial 
quote is much more reasonable than the Elk Grove Village option, but 
still strains the fest budget. We’re hoping to negotiate a bit more 
favorable terms.

Another option to consider is the Clarion Inn venue (VCF-Midwest). To do 
so, we’d need to make two changes. The first is absolute:

  * We’d need to move the fest up into March (off season). They’d be
    willing to give us a late March date (maybe even March 31/April 1),
    but no later.

The next option concerns cost. For off-season, there’s a minimum charge 
rate, regardless of sq ft usage. We have a couple ways we could meet the 
minimum charge:

  * We could increase fees and such to cover the cost ourselves. Since
    this venue’s cost is 3X our previous venues, covering all of that
    cost with fee increases might be unrealistic.
  * We can spread the cost into other areas. If we advertise a slightly
    more expensive room rate (think $130 versus $110), the difference
    per night can be used to meet the venue charge rate. I’m sure folks
    have opinions on this, but it is an option to consider.
  * Either instead of the above or in addition to it, we could guarantee
    room rental nights or food intake at the on-site cafe. Unlike room
    rate alterations, these would be guarantees (we’d be responsible for
    the difference if the minimums are not met). Again, I’m sure folks
    have opinions on this.
  * We could find a “partner” group wanting to host a similarly sized
    event at the same venue on the same weekend. There’s some value in
    partnering with another group (more cross traffic, etc.), but I’m
    not sure at this time who we would approach

The first change is not that hard to make. Choosing which direction to 
pursue for the second change is harder. Each option poses concerns, and 
it may be unrealistic to find a suitable hosting partner, but there are 
upsides. The venue needs to charge out a minimum rate but wants to work 
with us. Obviously, this venue offers plenty of room for growth. In 
addition to the 12000 sq ft in the ballroom, there’s probably 9000 sq ft 
in the foyer area and another 2000 sq ft in the side hallway that could 
be used to support additional smaller groups or special presentations or 
exhibits now and in the future.

I’m awaiting better pricing on a third option (Marriott Schaumburg). 
Like Clarion Inn, the venue is too large for our needs (~9000 sq ft), 
and the initial quote was the same as Clarion (given the same cost, we’d 
probably prefer the Clarion Inn location), but there may be 
opportunities to lower the price. Unlike the Clarion Inn location, the 
Marriott Ballroom has two 2340 sq ft middle sections and then 8 (4 per 
side) 490 sq ft sections on the sides that can be individually 
configured. Like the Carol Stream hotel, this one is renovated ($22M), 
offers easy access, provides easy loading options, and remains close to 
restaurants (Portillo’s is about 5 mile away :-)).

Initially, I thought we’d gather some additional quotes to help with 
negotiation at the Elk Grove location. But, based on feedback Grant has 
received from other organizations previously using the Elk Grove Village 
Holiday Inn location, it appears everyone has seen the same rate hikes. 
Unfortunately, no one has seen much success negotiating lower rates. 
While I know there were no major issues with the venue during the most 
recent fest, I do know the hotel portion suffered some complaints. Those 
attendees will most likely not shed a tear if we pick a new location for 
the 2023 show.

Tangentially related, Grant found some nice venues that are simply too 
small to hold CoCoFEST! Two such venues were Holiday Inn O’Hare and 
Holiday Inn Hoffman Estates. The O’Hare location was bigger (3100 sq ft 
ballroom), but it is the one situated at a busy corner of two main 
highways. The other was smaller (2000 sq ft), but also sports easy 
access and the venue coordinator is extremely interested in working with 
groups like GCCC to rent the venue. While neither will work for 
CoCoFEST!, I have long personally thought a “retro hackathon” weekend 
would be nice to organize in the Chicago area, and such an event could 
be more easily fit into a smaller venue like this. I’ve not even 
inquired on GCCC’s position concerning such an event, but the eagerness 
of the venue coordinator at Hoffman Estates creates even more personal 
interest to consider something like this. If others are interested in 
this or something else that can utilize these venues, feel free to reach 
out with ideas.

As always, we welcome feedback and are happy to answer questions on this 
topic. Feel free to contact us via email, Facebook, or the CoCo mailing 
list.

-- 
Jim Brain, 2021-22 President
Glenside Color Computer Club (GCCC)
president at glensideccc.com
www.glensideccc.com