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Stitch,<br>
<br>
There's certainly a spectrum! While the Asylum doesn't have
completely open doors (as in, you can't just come in and hang out,
unless you're a member's guest), we have a large enough membership
(300+) that there are always people hanging out in the space. It's
rare for the space to have fewer than 50 people around on most
weeknights.<br>
<br>
As I mentioned in the article, I think it really does boil down to
expenses. Rent in our area is so high that without multiple sources
of income and regular monthly payments, we couldn't stay open. Once
we charge for membership, however, we have to provide a service that
matches what people are paying for. This is why we strive for work
areas that professionals could use to practice their craft.<br>
<br>
A big part of why we grew as a space was because it was so difficult
to stay open at the 9,000 square foot scale, given our expenses and
the fact that it was nobody's full-time job to run the space (so we
were all burning out). We weren't the only ones that ran into this
in Boston - Willoughby & Baltic, a local hackerspace, occupied
the 9,000 square foot space before us and imploded for a variety of
reasons, but one of the most significant was simply not having
sustainable sources of income. i3Detroit, on the other hand, stays
open at 8,000 square feet with no paid staff, because their expenses
are so incredibly low (10x lower rent than us, per square foot). <br>
<br>
Travis Good and the <a href="http://www.nova-labs.org/blog/">NOVA
Labs</a> crew have a very good mix; they're running with a robust
business plan, at a scale (3,000-4,000 square feet) that is
sustainable by volunteers. <a href="http://www.i3detroit.com/">i3Detroit</a>,
like I mentioned, is still going strong at 4 years with all
volunteers.<br>
<br>
I don't personally know of spaces larger than i3Detroit who still
work as a free-to-access community space with an all-volunteer staff
that's akin to what you're talking about. Even i3Detroit is an
exception, in my mind, because their expenses are so low compared to
almost every other part of the U.S.<br>
<br>
-Gui<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 6/4/2013 11:51 AM, Elger Jonker
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:CABTcf_wk_OCxURk9HDYcekfKxpDRV67APE2fKjU0-WMfxksXNw@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">
<div style="">Hey Gui,</div>
<div><br>
</div>
It's interesting to see that you can make a living doing what
you love. This model sounds OK for running a "hardware
workshop"-type makerspace with some FTE, or at least give a
general feel about it.
<div>
<br>
</div>
<div style="">I say hardware workshop because because in my
experience this is not a place where you go and hang out after
work or in the weekends to do cool stuff. The numbers might be
the cause of breaking this concept. Am i right?</div>
<div style=""><br>
</div>
<div style="">In contrast: many of the spaces i know operate as
a foundation. They stay afloat with about 1000 euro each month
coming from memberships, selling drinks and donations (usually
in that order). Everyone contributes in buying stuff that's
needed or wanted. There is real dedication but in the end it's
mostly leisure.</div>
<div style=""><br>
</div>
<div style="">What i'm wondering: can there be a mix between the
80k-a-month-food-on-the-table and 1k-a-month-we-all-have-fun.
Any space that has this mix working?</div>
<div style=""><br>
</div>
<div style="">
Regards,</div>
<div style="">Stitch</div>
<div style=""><br>
</div>
<div style="">PS: At hack42 we went outside last week and
discovered there was a beautiful garden beneath the
wilderness: <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="https://hack42.nl/gallery/v/Spacecam/DSCF6288.JPG.html">https://hack42.nl/gallery/v/Spacecam/DSCF6288.JPG.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra"><br>
<br>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Tue, Jun 4, 2013 at 4:20 PM, Gui
Cavalcanti <span dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:gui@artisansasylum.com" target="_blank">gui@artisansasylum.com</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0
.8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">My latest
(gigantic) blog post for MAKE is up here: <a
moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://blog.makezine.com/2013/06/04/making-makerspaces-creating-a-business-model/"
target="_blank">http://blog.makezine.com/2013/06/04/making-makerspaces-creating-a-business-model/</a><br>
<br>
It focuses on how to create a steady-state business model
for makerspaces and hackerspaces, paying extra careful
attention to all of the expenses that could be incurred by a
business of our type. It's not a complete list, for sure,
but it's an intensive one.<br>
<br>
Would love to hear what you guys think.<span class="HOEnZb"><font
color="#888888"><br>
<br>
-- <br>
Gui Cavalcanti, President<br>
Artisan's Asylum, Inc.<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.artisansasylum.com" target="_blank">http://www.artisansasylum.com</a><br>
Cell: <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="tel:%28857%29%20389-7669" value="+18573897669"
target="_blank">(857) 389-7669</a><br>
<br>
_______________________________________________<br>
Discuss mailing list<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:Discuss@lists.hackerspaces.org"
target="_blank">Discuss@lists.hackerspaces.org</a><br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss"
target="_blank">http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss</a><br>
</font></span></blockquote>
</div>
<br>
<br clear="all">
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
<div dir="ltr">Elger Jonker<br>
Pentesting / Mediawiki / Content Management / Database
Modelling<br>
<br>
+31 (0)6 1342 5622 (+31 61 dial mac)
<div>Skype: elger.jonker</div>
<div><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.awesomeretro.com" target="_blank">http://www.awesomeretro.com</a>
- retro gaming foundation<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.elgerjonker.nl"
target="_blank">http://www.elgerjonker.nl</a> - curriculum
vitae / weblog<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.raveradio.nl"
target="_blank">http://www.raveradio.nl</a> - housemusic
revival show<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="https://www.hack42.nl"
target="_blank">https://www.hack42.nl</a> - hackerspace
arnhem<br>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Gui Cavalcanti, President
Artisan's Asylum, Inc.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.artisansasylum.com">http://www.artisansasylum.com</a>
Cell: (857) 389-7669</pre>
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