March
31, 2016
The
Arts and Cultural Initiative (ACI) is pleased to submit a proposal, to the City
of Rochester, for the use of the former Senior Center, Armory building. For our proposal format we have chosen to
respond section by section to the City’s RFP document, so that our responses (dark
black) are keyed to your questions (in light grey).
The Arts
and Cultural Initiative is a newly formed corporation which has come forth from
the Rochester Arts and Cultural Collaborative (RACC). The ACI is an offshoot of the Spaces
Committee, of the RACC, which has consistently focused on meeting the space
needs of the arts and cultural community of Rochester. The need for arts and cultural facilities is
clear from numerous studies, surveys, and focus groups. Our vision is for a vibrant, multi-use
facility which will serve both the arts community (of all types) and the
diverse cultural communities of Rochester.
There is a large pent up demand for reasonably priced space and we hope
to fulfill it.
The
upcoming vacancy of any city-owned building presents a rare chance to increase
support for the public good. The fact
that the building, the Senior Center/Armory facility, is perfectly suited for
arts and cultural needs provides an unbelievable opportunity to the community.
The combination of large performance spaces, large and small galleries,
classroom, meeting spaces, office and studio spaces, and a commercial kitchen
are the perfect configuration for a community-based arts and cultural
facility. The fact that it is an
historic building and aesthetically pleasing only adds to the allure.
Operations
will be supported by long term tenant rentals for display, gallery, studio, and
office space, and from facility rental fees for events, meetings and
activities. We will seek grants,
donations and do fundraising. While
rental revenue is expected to eventually cover operational expenses, the
facility will need to be supported by a subsidy from the City for utilities and
building expenses, such as is the case, with other City public use properties. Additional support is also requested for
start-up activities.
III. Description
of Intended Use
A. Required: Description of
intended use of
the Property to
include:
· Description of all activities to take place on the Property;
· Arts & Cultural Initiative (ACI) will provide facilities for arts and cultural
organizations, and individual artists, for both arts and cultural activities in
Rochester. The target demographics will
be all inclusive; young and old, all ethnic and social groups, and artists of
all genre’ will be welcome for arts, cultural, and their business needs, as
well.
· The ACI mission related activities on the
property are expected to include many of the following:
o
education classes
and speakers
o
gallery shows
o
ethnic group
gatherings
o
cultural events
o
cross cultural,
cross ethnic activities and events
o
museum displays
o
creative writing
space for individuals, groups and classes
o
individual artist
studios
o
events for local
as well as regional artists
o
space for sound,
photography, costume, voice, dance, visual art
o
general office space
for tenant organizations and individuals
o
food preparation
in the commercial kitchen
o
small group
meetings (by clubs, organizations and other groups)
o
meetings of
various interest groups
o
live performances;
musical, dance and theatrical
o
performance
preparation (rehearsal and set fabrication)
o
office services
(access to copier, internet, etc.)
· The facility will be open to the community for a
variety of purposes to include but not limited to:
o
wedding ceremonies
and receptions
o
celebrations: anniversary,
birthday, retirement, showers etc.
o
incubator space
for appropriate interests of individuals or organization
o
rental space for office
use, especially for arts or cultural groups
o
rental space for meetings
o
rental space for
religious purposes
o
fundraising event
space
o
And retail
· Proposed alterations and Improvement plan for the building;
· The building will be used “as is” for
the most part, so there are no proposed alterations to the basic building
structure. This includes retention as
much as possible of existing fixtures and fitting in the kitchen, ceramics
studio and photographic studio.
· The types of changes that might be
required moving forward include the addition of a sound system and stage
lighting for the performance space, on the third floor, and cosmetic changes,
like partitions or lighting related to the use of particular space for gallery,
museum, artist studio, or office us.
· Approximate number
of participants and staff
using the facility;
· We anticipate the staff will include an Executive
Director, 1 to 3 part-time support personnel, and volunteer support. Duties would include facility scheduling and
contracting, ticket sales, managing art equipment, general administration,
accounting and janitorial roles. Staff
will be augmented for events. We
anticipate the building being busy nearly seven days a week year around.
· Participant numbers will vary widely depending on
the activities underway.
· For a typical non-event
day, participant loading will include artists in studio, people in
classrooms, museum and gallery staff and visitors, office workers (of tenant
organizations), and small meetings by tenants, other local groups, or
businesses. We might see around 30
participants in the building at any one time.
· A typical event
day is harder to predict because of the potential for wide variation in
events. An event such as a theatrical or
musical performance in the third floor ball room space may fill the room to
capacity of 300+ people. Other events, large meetings, gallery shows, a new
museum display or wedding will also bring crowds, but not fill to
capacity. Finally, other activities and
events may involve much smaller groups.
·
Description of potential
off street parking needs;
· Day to day off-street parking needs include the
facility staff, any museum or gallery staff, resident artists, and some office
tenants. This is estimated to be 10 to 20 spots on an average day.
· Event off-street parking needs will naturally be
weighted toward evening hours, during the week, and weekends for performances
and events. The current off street
parking, which we understand to be both lots North of the building, is more
than sufficient for needs in the off hours.
For large events that occur during normal business hours there will be
additional parking load but it is difficult for us to predict. Usage of the city ramp on 1st Street
is also expected.
· Maintenance and custodial plan for
the
building.
· We are proposing that maintenance of
the building and capital improvements be reimbursed by the city, as is the case
with other organizations, operating out
of city owned buildings, who are providing benefits to the public good (e.g.
Senior Center, Art Center, Civic Theatre).
· Janitorial services will be provided
by the ACI on a day to day basis and contracted as part of any billable event.
B. Optional:
· Additional information describing benefits
to the City of Rochester
and
its citizens as
a result of the Applicant’s acquisition or tenancy.
· There is a well-known, and long standing need for
spaces and services to support the arts and cultural communities of
Rochester. The need has been identified
and reaffirmed in survey after survey, including the “Rochester AboutU” process
in 2012 and the DMC community outreach in 2014.
These needs include, but are not limited to; performance and rehearsal
spaces, arts studio space, gathering space for cultural and ethnic groups
(including food preparation), office space, and meeting space.
o
To quote Dr
Emilio DeGrazia, writer, professor emeritus Poet Lauriat of Winona, “These
lovers of music, theatre, painting, poetry, dance and ethnic diversity are
“lovers” of what they do and who they are because they find it vital to their
lives, as any community should. Rochester too often ignores these smaller
entities. But the cultural groundwork of any community is the creative
engagement of its citizens, all of whom are hungry for venues that bring them
out of their privacies while offering them guidance, example, instruction and
collaborative opportunities to showcase their best creative expressions.” This describes our mission, our purpose and
our plan
· In preparation for this proposal, we sought
commitment from arts and cultural organizations, groups, and individuals.
o
The following individuals
and groups have committed to monthly rental
of ACI Armory facilities. If we
can allocate space to them at an agreeable price, they are committed to paying
monthly rent.
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§
C4 CONCERNED CITIZENS FOR A CREATIVE COMM
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§
CHORAL ARTS ENSEMBLE
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§
VETS MUSEUM/ ROUDTABLE
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§
WORD PLAYERS
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§
KEN DEWAN
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§
KEVEN REID
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CAMBODIAN ASSOC. OF ROCH. MN (CARM)
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§
TRAILTOPIA
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§
DANCE PROJECT
§
ROCHESTER ART CENTER
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o
The following individuals
and groups have expressed support and an
interest in periodic use of the ACI
Armory facilities. If we can
allocate space to them at an agreeable rate, they are committed to paying by
the event
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§
ROCHESTER SYMPHONY
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§
DAWN SANDBORN PHOTOGRAPHY
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§
GALLERY 24
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ROCHESTER WOODCARVERS
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Rochester Arts Ensemble
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§
Alliance of Chicanos, Hispanics and Latin Americans
(ACHLA)
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§
McKay Bram
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§
Elenor Goldammer-Moffit
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§
Kari Dunn
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§
Andy Vercnocke
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§
Karla Giguere
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§
Amara Vercnocke
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§
Amber McCormick
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§
Curtis Butturf
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§
Simon Huelsbeck
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§
Vladimir Stupar
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Angela McHugh
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Cassandra Buck
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Kent Flattum
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Cecilia Cordon
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Kelly Mason
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Jason McKenzie
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Tyler Aug
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§
Brian Wells
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§
Jose "Manolo" Otero
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Winston Howard
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Sterling Haukom
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§
Cameron Smith
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Brian Archer
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Michael Baker
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Hayley Koop
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Larry Perleberg
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Oliver Books
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Bill Laabs
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Steven Dubois
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Jessica Ripley
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Chris Kostelec
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Claire Hilton
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Seamus Kolb
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Filip Swiergrl
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Brad Fabian
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Alex Metz
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Pat Egan
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Tracy van Eijl
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§
Charles Wilson
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Avai d'Amico
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§
Addison Israelson
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Jennifer Jeseph
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§
Sophie Marie Knetter
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§
Marisol Rodriguez
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David Wilson
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Crystal Reynolds
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Kim Zebel
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Michael Doherty
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Pam Witfield, Ph.d
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Laine Lovejoy
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§
Ana Reasner
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o
The following
individuals and groups have expressed support
for the ACI Armory facilities project, although they have not made any
specific commitments or confirmed
interest yet.
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§ THIRDEYE TRIBLE
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§ ROCHESTER CIVIC
MUSIC
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§ STEVEN SCHMIDT WEST
CHANNEL MUSIC
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§ MIKEY BERGMAN
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§ ANDREA GATES
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§ WSU MEETING SPACE/
CLASSES
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§ TIM J. BRENNAN WRITER
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§ SANDY LARSEN Writer/Actor
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§ TOM DRISCOLL MAN ED
SHIPWRECK BOOKS
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§ DWIGHT JENNINGS MUSIC JAMS
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§ KATE HALVERSON WRITER/ARTIST
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§ SEMVA Andrew
Westreich
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§ JOAN SWEEN
DIRCTOR/ARTIST
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§ LOMPR LEAGE OF MN
POETS ROCH.
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§ CHRISTIAN NISBIT
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§ MIKE KALMBACH WRITER
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§ ABSOLUTE THEATRE
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§ ERIC DECKER
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§ HELEN CHEN NOVELIST
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§ PATRICIA DUNN-WALKER
ARTIST
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§ MARY LOU DEVLIN ARTIST
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§ Gracie Guajardo
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§ Suzanne Szucs
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§ Donna Unseth
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§ Nate Bisping
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§ Michele Rodenberg
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§ Brad Budusiek
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§ Chris Bram
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§ Shannon Gandrad
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§ Kyle Truex
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§ Erick Leckelt
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§ Adam Salmi
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§ Rachel Kitchens
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§ Jeff Hansel
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§ Anastasia Hopkins
Folpe
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A large collection of letters-of-support has been provided
separately from this document.
IV. Statement of Qualifications
All interested
Parties should submit a statement of qualifications to include: A.
Required: An Applicant background Statement to
include:
1. Firm / Organization Name;
· Arts & Cultural Initiative (ACI) Mission/Purpose:
To create, facilitate and manage affordable and collaborative spaces and
services for arts and cultural initiatives. ….
3. Structure of
firm
/ organization, e.g. nonprofit, corporation;
· Articles of incorporation have been filed for ACI
preparing it for non-profit designation.
ACI is actively seeking non-profit status and, until such time as 501c3
status is attained, Rochester Area Foundation will be acting as our fiscal
agent.
4. Years that firm
/ organization has
been in business;
·
ACI is being
formed specifically for the purpose of operating the facilities for the arts
and cultural communities, and the public good.
The Armory building will be ACI’s first project. The Rochester Art and
Cultural Collaborative (RACC), the founding organization, from which ACI has
been formed, has been in sustained operation since 2014. ….
;
7. Financial
information in the form of
a current financial statement and balance sheet;
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ACI Proposal Income and Expense
|
|||
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Income
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Annual Est 2017
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Annual Est 2018
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Annual Est 2019
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Rental Income
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Facility Rental - monthly "firm" tenants(A)
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$29,160
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$31,000
|
$33,000
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Facility Rental - events "firm" (B)
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$16,800
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$17,300
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$18,000
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Facility Rental - events estimated (C)
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$40,000
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$43,000
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$48,000
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Other Income
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Donations/Fundraising
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$15,000
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$18,000
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$24,000
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Grants
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$8,000
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$10,000
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$14,000
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Start-up
Assistance from City (4)
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$20,000
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$0
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$0
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Ongoing City of Rochester Assistance
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$83,901
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$89,401
|
$89,401
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Total Income Estimates
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$212,861
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$208,701
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$226,401
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Income Notes
|
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(A) Orgs/Individuals who intend to be tenants
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(B) Orgs/Individuals who intend to use spaces for events, etc.
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(C) SrCntr 3rd Floor rentals for 2015 were $26,000
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Armory Expense Projections
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Annual Est 2017
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Annual Est 2018
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Annual Est 2019
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Building Expense
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Equip/Bldg Repair (1)
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$ 8,500
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$ 8,700
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$ 8,900
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Maintenance, Ongoing (1)
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$ 8,000
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$ 8,200
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$ 8,400
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Utilities (1, 2 & 8)
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$ 50,000
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$ 50,000
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$ 50,000
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Serv. Agreements (1 & 2)
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$ 5,400
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$ 5,500
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$ 5,600
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Insurance, including Building (1)
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$ 12,000
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$ 12,000
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$ 12,000
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Lease with City of Rochester (3)
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$ 1
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$ 1
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$ 1
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Annual
Capital Improvements (4)
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$ -
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$ 5,000
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$ 5,000
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Annual Building Exp Total
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$ 83,901
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$ 89,401
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$ 89,901
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Start-up Capital Costs (4)
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$ 15,000
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-
|
-
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Contingency Repair, @4thYear (1 & 10))
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$ 42,000
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$ -
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$ -
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Building Exp
w/start-up (4) & contingency (10)
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$ 140,901
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$ 89,401
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$ 89,901
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Operations Expense
|
Annual Est 2017
|
Annual Est 2018
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Annual Est 2019
|
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Employees (full time w/workman's comp, etc.)
|
$ 43,000
|
$ 46,000
|
$ 47,000
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Employees (part time 20 hrs/wk @ $15/hr)
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$ 14,500
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$ 29,000
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$ 42,500
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Janitorial (5)
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$ 25,000
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$ 27,000
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$ 29,000
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Building
Supplies (light bulbs, TP) (5)
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$ 5,000
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$ 5,500
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$ 6,000
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Garbage
(6)
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$ 2,500
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$ 2,600
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$ 2,700
|
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Internet
and landline phone (9)
|
$ 2,280
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$ 3,084
|
$ 3,084
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Office
supplies and services (7)
|
$ 3,000
|
$ 3,000
|
$ 3,000
|
|
Professional
services/tech support
|
$ 3,000
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$ 3,200
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$ 3,300
|
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Annual Operations Exp Total
|
$ 98,280
|
$ 119,384
|
$ 136,584
|
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Start-up Operations Costs (4)
|
$ 15,000
|
$ -
|
$ -
|
|
|
|
|
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Expenses: Building and Ops w/startups
(4)
|
$ 212,181
|
$ 208,785
|
$ 226,485
|
|
-
|
-
|
||
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Expense Grand Total w/contingency (10)
|
$ 254,181
|
$ 208,785
|
$ 226,485
|
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Expense
Notes:
|
|||
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(1) Based on audited Senior Center (SrCntr) data from 2010 to
2013, with modest increase added in 2018 and 2019
|
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(2) Based in 2015 actuals for Elevator $3,800, Fire Equip
$1,600, and data from 2010-2013, w/major repairs removed [see Note (10)]
|
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(3) Requesting $1 annual lease from City of Rochester
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(4) Draft estimates
|
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(5) Janitorial and Building Supplies based on SrCntr 2015
actual, plus estimated Y2Y growth due to increase usage
|
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(6) Garbage Removal based on Sr Cntr 2015 actual, plus estimated
Y2Y growth due to increase usage
|
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(7) Rough estimate for copier contract and other office expenses
|
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(8) May be high. Based on
SrCntr usage w/full kitchen in AM, five days/week
|
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(9) Spectrum Charter bid.
|
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(10) SrCntr had major plumbing and elevator repairs in 2010 and
2013 respectively. Contingency planning
is based on this once in 4 year cycle.
|
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8. Qualifications
for operation of proposed use;
·
The proposed ACI
facility operations will be led by a paid Executive Director, with appropriate
support staff. We have the RACC volunteer cadre extensive experience in
operating both arts organizations and facilities. Please see the references
list.
9. List
of other similar
activities
managed or
operated by the
applicant;
· ACI Board Members have extensive arts and
business experience, including operation of an arts center which showcased
performing and visual arts, classes and rental of space. ACI Board experience also includes operating one
of the oldest self-supporting community theatres in MN, including responsibility
for lease agreements, grants, policy and procedures, scheduling, marketing and
event production. In addition, the ACI
team has several people with extensive experience in arts administration and
facilities management upon whom we can draw.
10.Listing of any actions (within the last
10 years) taken by any
regulatory agency involving the firm / organization or
its agents or employees
with respect to any work performed;
· None.
11.Listing of any litigation (within the last
10 years) involving the firm
or its agents or
employees
with respect to any work performed;
·
None.
12….
13.Demonstration of
ability to obtain all appropriate casualty /
liability insurance coverage applicable to
the proposal.
·
The
building is already insured and we have spoken with the insurance provider and
foresee no problem
B. Optional: More detailed descriptions, such as
photographs, video
or project brochures of specific activities
referenced as relevant
experiences, may also be included.
·
An
extensive collection of letters-of-support from the
community has been gathered and have been provided separately to the City
Council
·
The
following letter has been received from the Rochester Art Center:
March 22, 2016
City of Rochester City Council
City Hall
201 4th Street SE
Rochester, MN 55904
Re: Support for artists downtown and bid
for Senior Center
To Whom It May Concern,
This letter serves as a commitment to
support the Rochester Arts & Cultural Collaborative Spaces Committee’s
initiative to utilize the former Armory / Senior Center for artists and
cultural groups in our community.
Writer Virginia Woolf knew an artist needs
a room to one's own. Having artists working downtown is essential to a strong
arts ecosystem. I fully support this proposal both professionally, and on
behalf of our Board of Directors, as well as personally. Because, even though I
work downtown, I would like a studio for writing. Additionally, RAC would also
support this initiative by hosting a studio there for visiting artists and to
have a base at the Center.
This year RAC turns 70 years old. During
that time, we have served more than 1 million people, including a significant
number of artists. RAC sits as a flagship arts organization in southern
Minnesota. But we (organization, artists, art enthusiasts) need an arts
ecosystem within which we can thrive. Through this year’s program Connect,
Create, Grow: Celebrating 70 Years of the Rochester Art Center it is our
intension to guide and encourage thoughtful re-alignment between arts and
cultural organizations in Rochester. We believe this RACC initiative is a
strong move to solidify an artists-led space.
As you know I am a great believer in the
potential of partnerships and the need for increased truly collaborative
efforts in our community—particularly in the arts community. As part of our
year long celebration Connect, Create, Grow: Celebrating 70 years of the
Rochester Art Center,
RAC will be holding a series of 70
events, workshops, activities, classes and exhibitions will be implemented
throughout 2016 and into 2017 at RAC and within our communities. We are making
a demonstrative shift to embrace the vision of a community facing organization
in every area of work. We aim to foster partnerships with our arts
ecosystem--across disciplines--to envision and implement a community that
leverages our collective efforts to do more together than we could alone.
In our strategic planning, we’re
interested in addressing questions of place and creativity.
• In a community the size of Rochester,
how do we understand creativity?
• How do we build creative places?
• What role do artists, makers and art
supporters play in developing our communities?
• What impact does economic regeneration
have on the creative class?
These questions are often posed in
growing cities. They are now urgent questions as we look to the future of our
communities through the work of DMC, Journey to Growth, and the Legacy Fund for
Minnesota. We understand that this moment is unique and timely and that it’s
time to
come together to envision, plan and
create. We also need action. This initiative is one that we can all get behind
and grow!
The above questions are often posed in
growing cities. They are now urgent questions as we look to the future of our
communities through the work of DMC, Journey to Growth, and the Legacy Fund for
Minnesota. We understand that this moment is unique and timely and that it’s
time to come together to envision, plan and create. In honor of seventy years
serving the community of Rochester, RAC, in collaboration with key partners
will implement a series of 70 events throughout 2016 and into 2017 as experiments
in the spirit of working together, envisioning, planning and doing to build a
creative, innovative community. The questions above serve as the conceptual
foundation of the experiments and will be addressed throughout all the
activities. They will be amplified throughout our community as well as through
outreach and collaborative projects, particularly in the citizen sites-where we
can directly dialogue with the public about what it means to be a citizen in
the 21st century and what role arts play in that citizenship. We would love to
have a Citizen Site at the former Armory / Senior Citizen site.
I hope you will agree with me about the
importance of this project. The RACC needs strong collaborators with arts
administrative experience. RAC can and will provide that for them in a
reciprocally collaborative way. We want to be a part of the discussion and
action—with our arts ecosystem—to build our community in creative and engaging
ways.
We know that other funders want to see
arts organizations collaborate with each other and with other community
organizations. Now is the time to begin working together through concrete
projects with clear deliverables.
To conclude, RAC supports this initiative
through:
• Moral and professional advice and
support to RACC, as needed;
• A commitment to rent a small space as a
base for artists working with RAC;
• To serve as a foundational organization
along with other arts organizations, museums and community groups.
• Concrete professional art
administrative support via governance, finance, grants, collaborative projects,
etc...
Sincerely,
Megan Johnston
Executive Director
Rochester Art Center
C. Proposals
to purchase the property will be evaluated according to the
following criteria:
· We are not proposing to purchase
the property
Footnote:
* This version of the proposal document has been abbreviated. The two deletions are: 1) the removal of the
sections detailing the Request for Proposal (RFP) administrative process, and
2) the removal of personally identifying information which is not necessary to
understand the proposal content.
