Kiara: Step 1: Do we want to go beyond where we are now? (Beyond where we're continuously renting, or taking next step of leasing/purchasing)
Nate: Would we take on more?
Jim: What is the ideal?
Lori: Brainstorm
Deb 2 Categories: Requirements,
Deb consulted boyfriend Claude (AI assistant):
Clarifying purpose of feasibility committee.
- Committee finances,
- organizational structure,
- timeline,
- space requirements,
- parking, etc.,
- risk/benefits.
Proposes discussion of committee structure, etc
Shelagh: We're looking at this upside down with respect to the visioning committee. Prerequisite is where do we want to be going?
Deb: is it aligned with our mission to form this committee when we haven't yet done the visioning part?
Jason: I know what you're saying and agree, but also: there is adequate reason to inquire into this. Do we have the will, capacity, etc?
Nate: Agree with Shelagh regarding PCD. If a separate entity which I strongly agree it should be, then PCD doesn't need a discussion. Separate entity needs to do all the legwork. Should be working in parallel.
Couple of hear, hears
Kiara: We fundamentally need PCD impetus/buy-in/initiative to say yes this is needed.
Brian: Let's talk about how we're going to talk about it
Jim: one thing that's consistent is the place to danceKari: I thought we had covered that there's going to be a separate LLC or nonprofit
Tasja: 3 options: Sublease a space like 1037, sign a lease for a space ourselves, or purchase
Discussions about how to organize, etc. (Details)
Deb: Do we need to examine all of the possibilities
Nate: All that PCD has to care about is: if some org comes along and says here's a space, all PCD has to do is say yes or no.
Mellen: We need numbers
Brian: we need to discuss how we're going to discuss this
Nate: Vibe check
Deb: feasability tasked with exploring options:
- Renting (what we're doing now)
- Subleasing
- Leasing
- Purchase
Jason: We are on the topic of clarifying the purpose of a feasibility committee. Could such a committee have certain thresholds: how much we can afford, floor requirements. We need overall mission, criteria needs to be defined.
Deb: Right, that's why we're here
Nev: I'm hearing: is there energy for a feasibility committee?
Nate: Having a hard time with the question of whether PCD is interested in taking it on? If yes, feasibility committee makes sense. If no, feasibility becomes the purview if the separate entity.
Deb: Question before us is: There is an available space, can we go for it?
Kiara: Would really like to go back to: Are we open to more? The space feels like a possibility, but: is there energy behind exploring feasibility?
Shelagh: A proposal on the table was (at the last meeting): do we want to be a sublessor? Ensuing discussion, there were are lot of questions. What does it look like to do these other things: partner with another group, etc. Point of coming together here: Let's put together a feasibility committee so that we as an organization can discern.
Tasja: I have spreadsheets with scenarios that would love to share. Carl has looked at it. Dying to share it, but can't because we don't have a feasibility committee. Have contractor quotes. Numbers need to be factored into loan repayments, etc.
Rebecca: Purpose of this group is to form a committee to explore further, using what Tasja has in hand
Deb: No, we need to have point of comparison
Beck: In which case, we do need to go back to vision. This is a great idea, a single possible option. We need to explore this one possibility. Don't know what we're doing here if we're not creating a feasibility committee.
Mellen: Thought visioning committee was tasked with that.
Answer: No, vision committee was formed to plan a member-wide visioning meeting probably now sometime in the fall.
(Break)
Brian: Part of feasibility was: could we sublease (rent) a more expensive space? And: still having a conversation about how we're going to do this.
Jason: What do we have in the bank (JB: roughly $20k). Do we need to start padding for future?
Nate: Coming back to separate organization, which needs to do the feasibility study.
John: We have an existing mission, and would have to expand that to take on space expansion; 2. The specific costs that Tasja is putting together is secondary to an organization that is willing to put in the effort and resources (capital, etc) to make it happen.
Nev: So many ideas, makes this hard. Might be helpful to break it up into chunks. How do we break it down? I've been a part of this with another group; it was similar, and they did it.
Jim: DNE made a greater entity that owns the camp and runs the business, but it's still all the same people.
Kiara: This is a tennis match. Doesn't have to be all known.
Deb asks for Shelagh's proposal. Discuss feasibility of a feasibility committee which explores options.
Nate is a no. See above.
Shelagh proposal: Assuming we are willing to create a feasibility, break into smaller groups and discuss what the feasibility committee would be tasked with?
Deb: Go into small groups? Stay in large group?
Carl: Genesis of how/why I got involved. Real estate background. Looked at space. Not going to do the temperature thing. I do have a nonprofit that's inactive with a board. Feasibility-wise: I know that it's really helpful to have something to focus on. Gives momentum; having the focus will help get energy and momentum that will help get successful real-estate project going. I'm not going to participate in committee work, but I'm happy to help from my expertise. Having looked at the space, I think it's worth pursuing for PCD.
Temperature readings:
Great space to rent for a little more: Hell yeah!
Forest avenue space feasibility: Mixed up & down
Making a time and energy investment for something like Forest Avenue 2 years
Making a time and energy investment for something like Forest Avenue 5 years
Kari: always on the outlook for a new appropriate place
Nate: We've been beating our heads against new possibilities. We're not going to find a rental that meets our needs.
Shelagh: Let's identify the questions we need to explore
Kiara: Do we set aside 1037 for now?
Looking for a new rental?
Break
Shelagh: We're having trouble coalescing what it is we're doing. What is the information we need as an organization so we can make an informed discussion? What are the questions?
Tasja wants to do it as a group, Shelagh wants to do it in small groups.
Facilitator's call: We're going to take 15 minutes, meet in groups of 5 to generate the questions: These are the things we want to know regarding a future space?
Small group inputs/questions:
John:
Adequate parking?
Big enough square footage?
What are the realistic operating costs if buying or leasing?
Is it sustainable? (Our dances won't sustain a separate entity)
Nate wants strong boundaries. Inappropriate thing for PCD to consider.
Do we have adequate energy to pursue either this or a separate organization?
We would need either to create a separate organization, or evolve.
If an external organization, what is the relationship with PCD?
Current structure has yielded major instability. We're beggars.
Can we survive as the existing organization?
Would PCD consider changing its mission in order to take on space, etc.?
If PCD is struggling to rent, what can we do?
If a new organization, how to form it and the relationships to PCD?
Jason:
Is PCD willing to reexamine its mission statement?
What does PCD need for its organizational structures and how do they work? 501C3, LLC, etc
Capital investments, what percentage would we be willing to put forth?
What are minimum criterias of ideals sq foot, acoustics, etc
What are the other real world examples that PCD can draw from that already exist, DNE, Boulder, Good Medicine, Austin Ecstatic Dance, etc.
Raw numbers, financial questions
IS PCD willing to do more than 4 times, income?
Deb:
Appreciation of Tasha, Kiara, Mellen and their work, and see the list of questions already put forth at the end of the original proposal and at the top by Mellen
How would a committee work that wouldn't burn people out
Brian:
What is the maximum we would charge per dance?
Would we can we afford?
Would we consider changing structure of charge/pre-registration? Yearly fees
What is optimum space per dancer?
What is maximum number of people per dance?
Search committee consideration: Parking, price, storage, acoustics, range to consider?
How do we fundraise?
DJ availability/feasibility?
After consideration/leftovers ideas:
What kind of fundraising can we develop?
Who can we partner with in the greater Portland dance committee?
How do we setup structures for donation/financing?
How can we forge checks successfully? LOL
What are our limiting factors?
Do we have the energy?
Where do we want to be and how do our options support this?
We need an exploration of what kind of loans might be available to finance?
Accessing grants and loans, etc
Who has the information that we need? (the other Karls, Barrett)
How to organize networking? business heads, real estate, philanthropy
Please see May 6 Meraki discussion questions for details on what is being considered.
Deb: organize questions: Maybe with AI
Then we start to answer questions via small group from Meraki
see google doc idea for list of questions, Everyone answering small list of questions
Crowd sourcing answers
Blair: Raise cost of dance now? New Meraki proposal.
Kari: In for a worker bee committee
Rebecca:
Needs to be a coalescing of a committee?
Watch party for next Meraki?
Tasja:
Make a google doc to crowd source and answer the questions
How long each question is to answer? (Claude?)
Shelagh:
Things happening in parallel
Vision committee to help answer bigger questions
Synergy (Deb): Is there interest in pursuing more information on 1037? Getting information/confirmation of interest for Kiara and Tasja?
Jason:
Thanking everyone for the effort
Starting the spark with effort
Kiara: This is a rare opportunity. parking, amount of space, up-to-date space, highly unusual situation
Jim shares amazing architectural drawings of the dance space at 1037 Forest Ave.
Closing round, adjourn
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