(Remember this is our first, test site)
The space, at least for the first three months, is:
Three Front Street, Unit B10, Rollinsford NH, part of the Salmon Falls Mills.
Reasons for this space
We chose this space because,
- It fits our bootstrap shoestring budget
- It has plenty of free, onsite parking
- It is an artist community with 100 quirky tenants (See a partial list of tenants)
(We looked at one space that served primarily as offices for insurance and equity finance tenants where we would probably be not welcomed over time), - Our room is right next to the outside door (smokers, visitors, seeing who’s here, windows looking outside),
- The manager is a libertarian,
- We can comfortably hold night events;
- Access, especially for visitors, is easy,
- We have flexibility with what we decide to create in the space.
- Utilities are included with the exception of the internet.
We will sign a month-to-month lease, and those who are members will decide during our planning meeting in Month 3 where we go after the experiences of our first months’ trial.
This space is
- 9 minutes (4.6 miles) from downtown Dover,
- 25 minutes (13.5 miles) from Newmarket,
- 39 minutes (29 miles) from downtown Exeter,
- 21 minutes (10.5 miles) from downtown Rochester, and
- 24 minutes (14 miles) from downtown Portsmouth.
There are cafes walking distance nearby. A cider distillery has outdoor seating from the building.
The space is simply an empty 1200 square foot room with concrete floors -- in at least one place the floor is uneven. It has wood on two and half walls, drywall on ½ wall (where we were thinking of projecting) and partially painted stone/brick on the last wall. The stone/brick will need painting. It has a sufficient electric service, faint fluorescent lighting, and a heater that is very loud (because it is partially below ground, we can heat it early and then turn it off relying on body heat thereafter.)
Furnishings:
We will use our own chairs, tables, bean bags, couches, TVs, lamps, rugs, etc. We are doing this on a shoestring, so anything you can lend or donate would be appreciated. Donations will be counted towards additional voting shares, at a heavily discounted amount, agreed upon by the Board.
Immediate Improvements:
Two of the walls are good looking wood, a third wall is mostly windows to the hallway with vision of the parking lot and trees by the river, but one wall to the outside needs paint. We are considering having our artists create a mural on the wall needing painting.