Logistics:Venue Checklist

Ideally, the meeting space offers both a large room where the group can meet as a whole, as well as "break-out" spaces, where smaller sets of participants can have discussions and collaborate.

In particular, an optimal venue for a participatory event has:

• Capacity to seat all participants in a circle, oval or square arrangement of chairs in the main meeting area
  • A simple question to ask the venue is "how many chairs fit side-by-side on the long and shorter sides of the main room?"
  • An ideal main meeting room can support a circle, oval or square for twice the number of anticipated participants. This insures that multiple breakout conversations can be held simultaneously in the main meeting space.
• Permission for organizers and participants to move chairs around during the event
  • Easily movable chairs: lightweight and not inter-connected.
• Ideally 1 breakout space/room per 10-12 participants
  • Are the breakout rooms easy to get to from the plenary space (on the same floor, in the same building)?
• Empty/open walls, ideally with permission to use post-it notes on the walls.
• No fixed-in-place furniture; collaborative events go better when participants face each other without any furniture between them
• No columns in the main meeting area that block views across the room
• Wireless internet. See Wireless Best Practices
• Multiple cordless microphones
• Easels and flip-charts at non-usurious rates. Some types of whiteboards are also good.
• Natural light is always a plus
• Gender-flexible rest rooms: do they have gender-neutral/gender-inclusive/single occupant restrooms?
• Accessibility: are all meeting spaces fully accessible, in particular for mobility- and vision-impaired participants?

The following are not needed:

• Projectors, screens or any other "presentation" technology
• A stage of speaker platform
• Any setup or arrangement for "panels"

Things to obtain for venue comparison include:

• A floor plan that shows what space we have to work with, ideally with
• A link to images of the event space
• Information about building security: do folks have to sign in to enter, is it easy to go outside for a smoke or fresh air, are there other protocol issues?
• Any other venue guidelines, policies or constraints to be aware of
• Confirm hours of access, and verify that you can be inside at least 1 hour (ideally 2 hours) before event start time and stay up to 1 hour after event closing time

Other considerations include:

• Catering:
  • Can you bring in your own food/catering, or are you obligated to use the facility's caterers?
  • Is there a fee for using non-approved caterers?
• Cost:
  • What is the base cost for the venue?
    • If you're lucky, you can find a free or cheap facility, but beware, as you often get what you pay for.
    • In most US/EU cities, 10-20 USD or EUR/person/day is a good price for rental, and we've gone as high as $40 USD or EUR/person/day.
  • Are there any fees for internet access?
  • Are there any other potential costs we should be modeling or anticipating?
  • Are any discounts provided to nonprofit/NGO organizations?
  • What forms of payment are accepted?
• Can supplies be shipped to the venue in advance?
  • If so, is there any charge for storage or handling?

• Policies on cancellation and reschedule: if you have to move your event dates or cancel outright, what happens with venue, including deposits, any penalities, and other responsibilities
• Insurance requirements: What does the venue require in terms of insurance coverage, can they provide it, and what does it cost?

• Public transit: how reachable is the venue
• Parking: Is there parking for anyone who drives, and if so, what is the per-vehicle cost?
• Bike parking/storage: is there space for bicycles to be parked and locked?

• Does the space have a “good vibe”? Does it feel like a warm and inviting space to meet?
  • Any potential triggers with the type of space (religious, political, governmental affiliation)?
  • Depending on the season, how does heating or air conditioning work? Can we easily adjust during the meeting?
• Ask about any potential usage conflicts within the space. If other people/orgs will be using space and overhearing proceedings, make sure to explore potential noise and resource conflicts (e.g. limited bathrooms or a slow internet connection for the facility)
• Noise issues: Another question we have learned the hard way to ask, even though the venue is not highly like to know the answer very far in advance:
  • "Is there any construction or any other noisy activities (tree trimming, etc.) scheduled for the event days?"
  • This would mainly be to find out if e.g. a new big building is going up nearby or loud trains or planes pass by outside.
  • This has wrecked events in the past.
• Are there security cameras in the space? If so, where and how is the data stored? How long is it kept, etc.?