[Bordermarch] Bordermarch Populace Meeting Notes Aug, 2006

[Karen Picou]

Baron Ericus the Silverhand,
Thank you for raising the same questions I have had on my mind but have not
been able to put into proper terms
Humbly,
Lady Ophelia Larue

-----Original Message-----
From: bordermarch-bounces at lists.ansteorra.org
[mailto:bordermarch-bounces at lists.ansteorra.org]On Behalf Of Bill C Burgin
Sent: Monday, September 11, 2006 5:21 PM
To: Barony of Bordermarch
Subject: Re: [Bordermarch] Bordermarch Populace Meeting Notes Aug, 2006

Sorry, folks.  I've thrown my two cents into Tessa's
very gracious report of last populace meeting.  If you
want the full version, see H.E.'s original posting.
ES

  <snip>
Treas- Bianca- August. [Deputy Treas- --]
> Announced: Any contributions of goods for putting on
> Melees event are
> helpful for the budget.

  [question]
  How much is the budget?

  <snip>
> Such as: MoC craft materials; Water bearing
> Gatorade,...<skip>...cleaning supplies for RRs;

> In order to comply with Law, in order to have
> adequate monies on hand and to
> meet the budget, an event "should" pay for itself
> (rather than depend on
> individual extra contributions to make it happen.)

  [comment]
  I agree! Common sense says that we do no more than
we can afford.  If we are asking for donations of bare
essentials, what are we spending the budget on?

  <snip>
> Kingdom Law requires in order to put on an event, a
> branch must have "twice" the price of an event in
the     bank,...

  [comment]
  I don't know about the Law, but this sounds like a
darn good way to may sure a branch never gets left
with it's tail hanging out in the cold!

  <snip>
> Alrich & Raven /Troy & Stephanie Allen- raised
> discussion about the cost of
> the Melees increasing ...
> Group Discussion: Populace previously voted July '06
> to increase price a few
> dollars.

  [question]
  What is "a few dollars" ?  The original asking price
for gate was almost double last year's gate, wasn't
it?   "So what?" you ask?
  Statistically, the event at which a price increase
is announced shows a decrease in attendance - and the
larger the increase, the larger the decrease.  By the
way, this goes all the way back to the days when we
increased site fees from $3 to $5!
  One of the reasons that people are willing to make
the long drive to our corner of the Kingdom has been
because we held our prices down - "A Good Time at a
Good Price"

  <snip>
> Because of the interest from across Kingdom and from
> visiting kingdoms,
> another day is added to the length of the event this
> year (opening site
> Thursday, also annexing the Monday before
> Thanksgiving

  [question]
  But what activities are we offering during this
extra    time?   Do they justify a 50% increase in
price? We do want these folks to feel like they got
their money's worth, don't we? ...and tell their
friends... and come back next year, etc.

  <snip>
> Event expenses at this regular site include, for
> example, rental at site, ...

  [SOAPBOX ALERT!]
  Which we have allowed to spiral upwards as well -
$4.50 per person, when the site owner has done little
more than "allow" us to improve the place for him?

>...electricity at site (which are not set
predetermined costs but are
> calculated by the park owner after he knows how many
> people attend , <snip> how much garbage he
> has to pick up by hand
> (particularly if garbage is not properly bagged and
> not left in bags beside
> the road); if any of his water pipes are run over by
> vehicle and broken (sometimes happens);  fuel tanks
for torches; BFT tent payment; port-a-cans
...insurance must be paid by barony for horses on
site; prizes; if a feast is sold, feast budget
> can be costly;

  [question]
  Isn't the feast budget separate from the site
budget, with it's own fee, as well?

  <snip>
> advertising; producing site tokens; printing gate
> registry sheets (thank
> you, Padraigin) or gate handout leaflets (thank you,
> Phocas).

  [question]
  Weren't the site tokens also donated?  What is it
that the Barony is paying for?   I see the insurance,
the $4.50 per adult fee to the owner, the
Port-O-Privies,
not to mention an extra $2.00 per head to rent our own
castle, but what else?
How much does that total? What can we do so that the
Barony can pay for its own events?  If the only way
for us to pay our own way is to charge a high gate
fee, we must be doing something wrong!

  [conclusion - hooray!]
  I have no doubt that, if we choose for this event to
become one of the Kingdom-level, "must-do" events we
could make it so - but is it that now?  We need to
EARN the right to charge higher prices, and I don't
think we have done that -yet.

  <snip>
   Your servant
> Tessa of the Gardens
> Seneschal, Bordermarch
>

>Thank you, Mistress Tessa, for your very kind report,
and for helping an old-timer stay "in the loop."
>
> My two cents,
  Baron Ericus the Silverhand, WSA

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