
Edward L Platt  wrote:
>                 
> > a) have some sort of sponsorship program?
>  i3 Detroit has tried a few different things. 
...
> A couple years ago, we also passed a "scholarship" program that creates 
> one dues-free membership for every 10 dues-paying members.  Anyone can 
> apply and they spots are granted on a 6 month basis.  Unfortunately, 
> this policy proved unpopular with the membership and subsequent boards 
> and it was never implemented. 

That's not inaccurate, but I think it oversimplifies a great deal.

As one of the folks who started to take on the task of implementation (but certainly not the last), I came to the realization that our guest policy is so generous, there's little actual need for a scholarship program. I didn't feel it was the best use of my time, and that seems to be the conclusion reached by everyone else who's started to work on it, too. So yes, that's technically "unpopular", but I don't think it's because the policy is hated, so much as that it's redundant. The number of frequent guests (some of whom even pay dues once in a while) is testament to that. If anyone feels differently, well, they're welcome to work on it. :) 

Secondly, as written, the policy requires that we know how many members we have. That turns out to be a difficult question to answer!

Thirdly, to the original question of "sponsorship", this actually happens quite a lot at i3 -- there's nothing saying that the person making the dues payment has to be the person holding the key. There are people with memberships paid by their companies, paid by their families, paid by other members/friends, in the past we've had teachers with memberships paid by the school, there may be more of which I'm unaware. All of it helps pay the bills, and for everyone else, there's guest access.

> > We're writing our business plan and want to ensure that we block out 
> > such accommodations in a workable manner, but are having a bit of 
> > trouble finding a working model within the hackerspace world.

I think you've put more time and research into your business plan than many spaces put into their entire organizational underpinnings. :)

-Nate B-
