101 Mill Road Venue Business Plan

Summary: This business Plan provides an approach to spiral development of the

101 Mill Road site as a wedding and event venue. The Plan proposes to start with
the site as is, first establishing very basic facilities for weddings (tent, temporary
toilet facilities, possible use of the existing kitchen for non-public uses). After
establishing that a market exists for this type of venue in Chelmsford, the plan
envisions a series of improvements to the site. The end result will be a fully
handicap accessible and configured site to provide full on-site support to weddings
and other events. The property will become an income producing facility for the
Town while maintaining the site’s historical value. The Plan envisions working with
the 99 Mill Road facilities to the extent they can accommodate a venue within their
charter.

The Appendix to this report provides a summary of rental amenities available to

event planners that are paid for by the event host.

Market Analysis: There were approximately 125 marriage applications in

Chelmsford in 2015 (www.townofchelmsford.us/245/Births/Marriages/Deaths). In
2014, there were approximately 140. 101 Mill Committee research found that the
outdoor wedding and event venues within approximately 100 miles of Chelmsford
are frequently used for weddings (see the 101 Mill Committee Final Report for
locations and events supported). Research shows that the average wedding size in
2015 was 125 guests. We conclude there is a potential market for this service.

Key Assumptions:

1) There exists a demand in Chelmsford and surrounding towns for an outdoor

venue for weddings and events.
2) A Chelmsford agency (e. g., the Historical Commission) could operate the
facility in accordance with this plan.
3) The 99 Mill Road community charter will allow cooperation with the 101 Mill
Road effort and venues.
4) All costs for maintenance and support sustained up to April 2018, including
purchase price and building/grounds maintenance, are sunk costs.
5) The site is sufficient in size to accommodate the entire infrastructure needed
to conduct an outside event based on operating models at similar venues.

Risk Analysis: The third assumption, if false, will limit the value of 101 Mill as a
venue. Further, if either of the first two assumptions proves to be false, the Plan will
not be feasible. Assumption 4 is the basis for cost analysis of the venue going
forward.

Final, 14 December, 2016

First Steps: The Board of Selectmen will select, or appoint, a person or group to
execute this plan. The effort will include advertising the site for April 2018
(weather permitting) and succeeding months. Senior citizen time (in lieu of taxes)
may support this effort.

Breakeven (Cost) analysis: This analysis is based on comparing Operating Costs

and income over a designated time period for a Venue. The comparison is based on
standard accounting procedures for similar comparisons. It does not include costs
incurred by the bride/groom, or a consideration of taxes that might be received
under some form of private ownership. Table 1 shows the expenses expected to be
incurred to prepare the building and grounds and maintain and support the site. We
anticipate charging $1800 per wedding; other events may be less depending on
what is desired.

Table 1: Recurring Cost Analysis

Cost Element Estimate Basis
Utilities $7600 per year 2015 experience rounded
up
Facility/grounds cleanup 2 at $700 = $1400 Committee estimate
Grounds costs 7 months at $200 = $1400 Committee estimate
Snow removal 8 events at $75 = $600 Committee estimate
Annual maintenance $5700 per year Conservative estimate
Total $16,700 per year

A primary element of this plan is to provide allowance for a full time caretaker to
live on site while providing a percentage of gate receipts as sole compensation
similar to the model in use by the Asa Whiting House after establishing a steady
state of operation.

At $1800 per wedding (charges for similar facilities in New England), the breakeven
is 10 weddings per year.

Steady State Cost Analysis:

The Plan anticipates building up to two weddings or events per week for a total of
48 events per calendar year (Lincoln, MA experience). All pertinent costs are
expected to be similar to 2018. Therefore, the Plan expects to turn a profit of
$69,700 less any future compensation that may be paid. It is expected that any
profits will be re-directed into the venue for the purposes of spiral development
(see below).

Spiral Development Plans:

The following process is suggested. Each spiral should be a stand alone project.
Completing a spiral includes planning for the next spiral.

Spiral 0 – Initial State:

Final, 14 December, 2016

The interior of the home itself will not be used internally by guests or vendors.
A wedding party will engage the services of various vendors to provide the
following:
Tent and dance floor
Trailer-based toilet facilities
Trailer-based catering
Tables/chairs
Linens/silverware
DJ/Sound system
Bar Services (including any police detailing)
Any other regular vendor services associated with weddings.
Other potential events or gathering will engage groups of these services as needed
for their event.

Spiral 1: The first improvement should be to add external toilet facilities,

procurement of a tent and pad as well as tables and chairs.

Spiral 2: Make the main facility handicap-accessible on the first floor and upgrade
the existing kitchen to commercial standards. Address physical needs of the addition
as required. Upgrading to handicap accessibility includes improvements to the
existing first floor bathrooms.

Spiral 3: Upgrade the second and third floors of the house and addition. This should
include living quarters for caretaker(s) to move them off the main floor. Create
changing rooms on second floor for guest parties. Open the lower levels of the main
structure to maximize the space for use as gathering areas.

After Spiral three (3) the venue will have all the amenities in place for both indoor
and outdoor events to be fully competitive with other sites.

Final, 14 December, 2016

Appendix

Rental Amenities For Destination Events

As part of the business plan for 101 Mill Road there is the expectation of spiral
development of the property. This is to say that there will be no heavy front end financial
outlays to bring the building or its internal structures on line until the revenue stream and
bookings can support it.

In the initial spiral, the site would operate using rental kitchen and bathroom facilities
that have come into favor in recent years as a means of allowing events to take place
where fixed infrastructure may not exist. By the very nature of these temporary
structures, there is minimal footprint and impact to the site in both the short and long
term. The responsibility for bringing the trailer on site belongs to the renter and
delivery/removal by the contracting company with no other clean up required.

Portable bathroom facilities have come a long way and there is an entire industry that
now caters to providing upscale type trailers to events. A sample image of one such
trailer located on a property similar to 101 Mill is shown below as is an example of an
ADA accessible trailer on the following page.

www.royalrestrooms.com

Final, 14 December, 2016

 ADA compliant www.luxtrs.com

Furnishings within the trailers are done at various levels suitable for a variety of events.
Once such example shown below was taken from a Wall Street Journal Article “A
Portable toilet with a Flat Panel TV”, 22 September 2016, that highlighted burgeoning
event trailer industry.

(Jane Spence WSJ Sep 22, 2006)

Final, 14 December, 2016

Portable kitchens are no less flexible nor lacking in options. From simple commercial
style units like those shown below to specialty rental vendors, there are a range of options
available for any event type. One such company Mobile Kitchen Solutions has a wide
range of options up to tented dining spaces that combines the idea of tent space intended
for the 101 Mill site.

Online image: Mobile Kitchen Solutions

Online image: US mobile Kitchens

Final, 14 December, 2016

In the final examination, the idea of these types of temporary structures fits the model of
spiral development for the property extremely well. With no obligation on the part of the
Town and utilizing a temporary footprint, the facilities would allow the site to get off the
ground and allow everyone to determine whether the 101 Mill site could continue
forward into an continuous level of self improvement funded by revenue obtained from
events. If at any time the decision is made not to continue, there has been no
extraordinary upfront investment and any improvements made to the fixed building and
infrastructure itself would only enhance its value should the Town choose to divest.

Final, 14 December, 2016