Los Angeles 2009 Drupalcon Proposal

Please comment on and/or feel free to edit this proposal. I am asking the Drupal Association to monitor this wiki. The format is loosely based on the RFP at http://association.drupal.org/Drupal-conference-proposals-2008-2009.

New version submitted to the Drupal Association and posted August 9, 2008

Los Angeles DrupalCon – Spring, 2009

A proposal from the Los Angeles Drupal Users

Date: April 27 – 30, 2009. Code sprint at a location T/B/D on May 1, 2009.

Location: Pasadena, California.

Venue: Pasadena Convention Center Ballroom. The Ballroom is a new addition to the Convention Center with 25,000 square feet of usable space that can be divided into as many as eight working areas using air-wall technology. This will give us six working areas seating up to 300 persons in each. Those spaces can be quickly combined to provide a 1,000 seat area for keynotes without reconfiguring any equipment (stage, chairs, A/V) on the floor.

The Pasadena Convention Center is a great fit for a DrupalCon. The building can easily accommodate over 1,200 attendees in a very flexible configuration. The Pasadena Convention Center provides an event manager who takes responsibility for coordinating operations during the event, and they fulfill almost all physical requirements, such as staging, reconfiguration services and registration setup.
The Pasadena Convention Center has additional facilities that can be secured for side meetings and sessions, or those can be held at the adjacent Sheraton hotel.

Attendance fees: We anticipate setting an average fee of $200.

Free and sponsored individuals: We intend to create a pool for stipends on a case-by-case basis. This will be administered in concert with the Drupal Association.

Sponsorship structure: We will adopt a structure similar to the one used in Boston with a goal of $160,000. We will have Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze levels, and will also offer lower sponsorship levels for small companies, organizations and individuals. We have made preliminary contact with several potential sponsors.

• Platinum - $18,000
• Gold - $6,000
• Silver - $3,000
• Bronze - $1,250
• Supporter- $250

Revenue generating sub-events: None planned at this time.

Budget:

--- details reserved ---

Total 300,000

This is a preliminary budget for planning purposes.

The Pasadena Convention Center offsets rent against expenses, and those expenses dwarf the calculated rent. The preliminary budget is neither optimistic nor pessimistic, and while the final numbers within the categories might differ, the overall budget should fall close to the estimates.

Los Angeles DrupalCon will be a not-for-profit event. Any incidental revenue will be used for the benefit of the Drupal community. The event has a breakeven point at roughly two-thirds of our attendance and sponsorship goals.

Fiscal responsibility: The Los Angeles Drupal Users Group is not a legal entity and has no formal organization. The Drupal Association through an authorized representative would assume all legal and financial commitments.

Catering: Catering at the Pasadena Convention Center is expensive, and those charges are the largest single line item in our budget. Of that, the bulk is a $30 per day per attendee cost for beverages and snacks. We will not provide a lunch, as there are plenty of restaurants and cafes available within a block or two of the facility, and there will be food concessions on site, as well.

Program: The program will be managed by the Los Angeles Drupal Users Group with input from all interested parties. We do not plan to compensate session presenters, but we will reserve some funding for keynote speakers, if needed. One or more of our committed volunteers will serve as Program Director, and will take responsibility for managing the track and general program schedules.

Attendees will be allowed and encouraged to propose sessions and to vote and comment on those proposals. Should the Group determine that there is a gap in program coverage, the Program Director will add sessions and recruit presenters to address that gap.

Code sprint: The code and documentation sprints are currently planned for the Friday following the DrupalCon. The location is yet to be determined. There is no budget for this event beyond incidental costs.

Website: The website will provide:

• Online registration and payment
• Schedule information
• Travel and lodging information
• Session proposal and user rating
• Networking and notification systems

Promotion: Our small promotion and PR budget will be used to promote the event and Drupal in general to the public, focusing on the Southern California region.

Staffing: We will contract with a professional event organizer specializing in not-for-profit events or work with an organizer provided by the association. Los Angeles Drupal Users will assist in the production of the conference.

Committed volunteers: The following members of the Los Angeles Drupal Users Group have committed to supporting the event by taking leadership roles in its production as of July, 2008:

• Simon Ayriss
• Chris Charlton
• Cary Gordon
• Blake Luchessi
• Benno Sebastian
• Mike Stewart

About Pasadena:

Pasadena, with a population of about 140,000 is located at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains, less than ten miles from downtown Los Angeles, yet it maintains a distinct character defined by its many diverse cultural, scientific and academic institutions. It is approximately twenty minutes from the Burbank Airport and half an hour from Los Angeles International Airport by shuttle or car.
Pasadena has many clubs and restaurants, and an active street scene in its Old Town area. Along with Old Town, it has diverse shopping areas including the Paseo Colorado, Lake Street and Old Town to suit all tastes.
The Convention Center is centrally located with easy access to restaurants. Over a thousand tables are available within two blocks of the center, many in a plaza directly across the street. Conference hotels are close, with one directly adjacent to the Center and others within a two to five minute walk. There is also a motel next to the Center and other high quality, economical motels a short bus ride away. The Center is blocks from a subway line that runs to Downtown Los Angeles and connects to Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley.
The Los Angeles metropolitan area, with a population of roughly sixteen million, is the second largest in the United States and thirteenth largest in the World.

Museums:
• Norton Simon Museum
• Pacific Asia Museum
• Pasadena Museum of California Art
• Gamble House
• Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens (San Marino)

Academic institutions:
• California Institute of Technology
• Art Center College of Design
• Pasadena City College
• Fuller Theological Seminary
• California School of Culinary Arts
• Pacific Oaks College

And:
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory (where it really is rocket science)

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New version posted July 28, 2008

Los Angeles Drupalcon – Spring, 2009

A proposal from the Los Angeles Drupal Users.

Los Angeles Drupalcon will be a not-for-profit event. Any incidental revenue overage will be used for the benefit of the Drupal community.

Date:  April 27 – 30, 2009. Code sprint at a location T/B/D on May 1, 2009.

Location: Pasadena, California.

Venue: Pasadena Convention Center Ballroom. The Ballroom is a new addition to the Convention Center with 25,000 square feet of usable space that can be divided into as many as eight working areas using air-wall technology. This will give us six working areas seating up to 250 persons in each. Those spaces can be quickly combined to provide a 1,000 seat area for keynotes without reconfiguring any equipment (stage, chairs, A/V) on the floor.

Attendance fees: We anticipate setting an average fee of $200.

Free and sponsored individuals: We intend to create a pool for stipends on a case-by-case basis. This will be administered in concert with the Drupal Association.

Revenue generating sub-events:  None planned at this time.

Sponsorship structure: We will adopt a structure similar to the one used in Boston with a goal of $160,000. We will have Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze levels, and will also offer lower sponsorship levels for small companies, organizations and individuals. We have made preliminary contact with several potential sponsors.

• Platinum - $18,000
• Gold - $6,000
• Silver - $3,000
• Bronze - $1,250
• Supporter- $250

Budget:

(not available online)

This is a preliminary budget for planning purposes.

Staffing: We will contract with a professional event organizer specializing in not-for-profit events. Los Angeles Drupal Users will assist in the production of the conference.

Website: The website will provide:

online registration and payment

• schedule information
• travel and lodging information
• session proposal and user rating

Committed volunteers:

• Simon Ayriss
• Chris Charlton
• Cary Gordon
• Blake Lucchesi
• Benno Sebastian
• Mike Stewart

These LA Drupal Users members have committed to taking lead roles during the event and participating in event planning.  Additionally, Cary Gordon has committed to being the event organizer.

Overview:

The Pasadena Convention Center is a great fit for a DrupalCon. The building can easily accommodate over 1,200 attendees in a very flexible configuration. The Pasadena Convention Center provides an event manager who takes responsibility for coordinating operations during the event, and they fulfill almost all physical requirements, such as staging, reconfiguration services and registration setup.

The Pasadena Convention Center has additional facilities that can be secured for side meetings and sessions, or those can be held at the adjacent Sheraton hotel.

The rent is discounted against catering charges, and those charges are the biggest single line item in our budget. Of that, the bulk is a $30 per day per attendee cost for beverages and snacks. We will not provide a lunch onsite (cost about $25) as there are plenty of restaurants and cafes available within a block or two of the facility and there will be a food concession on site, as well.

 

About Pasadena:

Pasadena, with a population of about 140,000 is located at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains, less than ten miles from downtown Los Angeles, yet it maintains a distinct character defined by its many diverse cultural, scientific and academic institutions. It is approximately twenty minutes from the Burbank Airport and half an hour from Los Angeles International Airport by shuttle or car.

Pasadena has many clubs and restaurants, and an active street scene in its Old Town area. Along with Old Town, it has diverse shopping areas including the Paseo Colorado, Lake Street and Old Town to suit all tastes.

The Convention Center is centrally located with easy access to restaurants. Over a thousand tables are available within two blocks of the center, many in a plaza directly across the street. Conference hotels are close, with one directly adjacent to the Center and others within a two to five minute walk. There is also a motel next to the Center and other high quality, economical motels a short bus ride away. The center is blocks from a subway line that runs to Downtown Los Angeles and connects to Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley.

Museums:

• Norton Simon Museum
• Pacific Asia Museum
• Pasadena Museum of California Art
• Gamble House
• Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens (San Marino)

Academic institutions:

• California Institute of Technology
• Art Center College of Design
• Pasadena City College
• Fuller Theological Seminary
• California School of Culinary Arts
• Pacific Oaks College

Jet Propulsion Laboratory (where it really is rocket science)

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Previous version

Los Angeles Drupalcon – Spring, 2009

Exploratory pre-proposal.

Los Angeles Drupalcon will be a not-for-profit event. Any incidental revenue overage will be used for the benefit of the Drupal community.

Free and sponsored individuals: t/b/d. We intend to create a pool for stipends on a case-by-case basis. This should be administered in concert with the Drupal Association.

Revenue generating sub-events: t/b/d.

Sponsorship structure: t/b/d. We have made preliminary contact with several potential sponsors.

Budget: t/b/d.

Location: Los Angeles / Southern California.

Venue: t/b/d. There are many potential venues in Southern California. We will seek a venue that meets the physical requirements, as well as offering a visitor-friendly location and environment. We intend to pick a facility that can accommodate 1,200 attendees.

Attendance fees: Pending selection of a venue and determination of sponsorship level, we will aim for a fee of $200.

Date: t/b/d with preference for mid-April.

Staffing: We will contract with a professional event organizer specializing in not-for-profit events. Los Angeles Drupal users will assist the professional staff.

Website: The website will provide:

• online registration and payment
• schedule information
• travel and lodging information
• session proposal and user rating

Notes:

We could reduce the cost of attendance by holding the conference at a university such as Loyola Marymount. In that case, the date would need to be subsequent to the end of the academic year, presumably mid-June.

We would like to avoid the typical venues for conferences of this size – Los Angeles Airport area hotels, as they are in an isolated location.

One of our potential sponsors has suggested holding the conference in Santa Barbara, which an attractive area with an appropriate venue and a range of lodging options, despite some travel challenge.

9Apr08 - So far the most promising venues are Pasadena and LMU. I will be meeting with the Pasadena Convention and Visitors Bureau soon and will report back.

20Apr08 - I will present an overview of the Pasadena proposal at the 29 Apr meeting

Alternate areas/locations: Studio City (City Walk: lodging/hotels, bars, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, freeway access), Anaheim (Convention Center, entertainment, lodging, freeway access), Downtown (challenging and not always pretty, freeway access), Long Beach (airport, hotels, sea breeze, restaurants, bars, freeway access)