Meeting Facilities

[Shotgun]

It looks like our Squadron is going to be homeless soon. We are currently meeting in an empty retail space in a strip mall across the street from our airport. We were allowed to use the space for free by the owner of the property until an interested party wanted to lease it.

We thought we had it made because the space was not being advertised, it had never been occupied, and in the down economy there is a glut of retail space in our community.

Of course nothing good lasts forever and it seems someone DOES want the space now.

We've known we may have to vacate at any time so it is not a shock It's been on the back burner ever since we moved into the retail space 8 months ago. But now we are actively looking for a new HQ.

My question for the CAP collective is:  where does your Squadron meet? Do you have to pay? And if so, how do you raise your funds?

[Psicorp]

We had a home in a building belonging to the Office of Veterns Affairs (was also home to a Army Reserve unit), but the military decided to consolidate and kicked everyone out (including us) earlier this year.   We're now meeting in the basement of a fire station which also houses an EOC.  It's not permanent, but it's a home for now.   We're still looking into options for long term, so I feel your pain.

[Pylon]

We have several buildings and a hangar on the local county airport grounds.  Old buildings which the county did not use any longer; just fix 'em up and we can use them indefinitely as ours.  We also share space with the local EAA for some meetings.  Just make the right relationships with the county/organization in question.

Many organizations have buildings/space but don't use it full-time.  So if the VFW or EAA or Elks or KoC or American Legion or whomever doesn't have a function on your meeting nights, ask to use theirs.  In turn, offer to volunteer to support some of their events or fundraisers or provide a color guard for their ceremonies or whatever you can offer.

When our squadron first started out, they met in the lobby of the local FBO.

[jimmydeanno]

Here is some "history" for you of the squadron's I've been in that might give you some ideas.

SQUADRON 1: Met in the basement of a church.  No fee was required, however, space was tight in terms of office/admin/storage.

SQUADRON 2: Met in an unused building at the local prison.  Had several offices, a 45 X 140 open area, restrooms, classroom space, etc.  No fee was required.

SQUADRON 3: Met on an AD AFB in the Honor Guard Building.  Had a logistics room and an 8X10 room - plus shared space (two car garage space).  No fee was required.

SQUADRON 3: Moved to unused building on the same base.  Had 5 rooms that were 25 X 40, restrooms, etc.  No fee was required.  Also includes an arrangement to use the State Department of Environmental Services building with prior notification.

SQUADRON 4: Meets on an ANG base in an unused portion of a maintenance hangar.  No fee is required.

POSSIBLE SQUADRON 5: Just inquired about starting a new squadron, VFW said they'd be able to provide us with one room - free of charge and be able to use the building as shared space.  Looking for a bit larger space though.

[O-Rex]

Typically, squadrons meet at schools, mil bases, municipal bldgs like fire & police stations, fraternal lodges, etc.

FBO's (preferably one that CAP uses) are another option. . .

We have a squadron that meets at an Air Museum: it's a sweet deal.

The trick is to find someone CAP-friendly who will allow you to use facilities 'pro-bono,' and you can offer to assist them within the realm of what CAP regs will allow.

[TEAM SURGE]

We met in the ATV training center, next to the giant Air Museum in Tillamook.....If I were you, I would talk to the Police station, most police stations are very cooperative with Civil Air Patrol, especially if the have Police/Sheriff Cadets themselves..

[jeders]

We currently meet in the building for a jet charter service. Apparently the squadron used to have something like double the space it currently has, but the jet charter company expanded and took much of it. No fees, but we don't have access to the restrooms unless there is someone from the charter business in the lobby. This is because they lock there lobby after 5 and that where the only restrooms are. They always let us in if they're there, they just aren't always there.

Here's a question to sort of expand on this topic. My squadron is currently looking for a larger space because we've started growing considerably. There are several empty buildings (warehouse/offices, hangars) on the airport grounds that we'd like to use. My question is, what's the best way to approach the airport (or anyone) about using there facilities for free?

[O-Rex]

We currently meet in the building for a jet charter service. Apparently the squadron used to have something like double the space it currently has, but the jet charter company expanded and took much of it. No fees, but we don't have access to the restrooms unless there is someone from the charter business in the lobby. This is because they lock there lobby after 5 and that where the only restrooms are. They always let us in if they're there, they just aren't always there.

Here's a question to sort of expand on this topic. My squadron is currently looking for a larger space because we've started growing considerably. There are several empty buildings (warehouse/offices, hangars) on the airport grounds that we'd like to use. My question is, what's the best way to approach the airport (or anyone) about using there facilities for free?

Contact the APT management office to find out who actually owns or leases the facilities.

One option is to approach the entity and perhaps offer a donation cert for the value of the cost of rental (you actually have to list a figure when completing your annual logistics reports anyway) So at least they are getting some benefit from the relationship.  Contact your logistics or legal officer for details.

Just remember that if the landholder is a for-profit enterprise, their goal is probably to find someone to occupy the facility and pay for it. . . .

If you are successful in negotiating to occupy a currently unused facility, ask what happens when they find a paying tenant, and plan accordingly.

[DC]

We currently meet in the conference room at the local FBO. There is a temporary divider that blocks off about a third of the room. The Seniors meet in the larger space, works fine for them, cadets meet in the small area, we are packed in like sardines. But, it does have its benefits,

a. Its free
b. Highspeed Wireless Internet
c. Easy access to restrooms
d. Free water for cadets, free coffee for seniors 
e. We have a great relationship with the FBO, they allow the cadets to drill on empty parts of the flightline, hold staff meetings in the conference room on weekends, etc.
f. There is a decent sized field to the side of the attached hangar, plenty big enough for ceremonies and for the cadets to drill.

The things we don't like about it are

a. Its way too small, at least for the cadets, we cannot even get enough chairs for everyone to sit during classes, and we cannot actively recruit because we don't have anywhere to put the cadets.
b. We cannot personalize it, put up a bulletin board, or any of that.

Formerly we met at a local flight school. We basically were given the front half of the building, the cadets had a large room to themselves, the seniors had a seperate room, there was a bathroom and a supply room. There was a small parking lot that the cadets used for drill. It was pretty nice, we were free to put up posters, awards, pictures and such, and generally personalize the rooms. We had a nice sign on the front of the building, and it generally worked pretty good. We had an internet connection for our SQ laptop and our own phone too. It was also free. We had to vacate when the owner decided to expand the space the flight school occupied. He let us keep the supply closet, lets us park our comms trailer outside, and put some CAP pamphlets out on the counter in the lobby though. Also still gives cadets a discount on flight lessons.

We have also met in the FL Dept of Forestry building at our airport. Sucked. No seperate areas for seniors and cadets, access to bathrooms depended upon whether they decided to lock the back offices or not...

[RiseAbove]

I'd like to say that my squadron has it pretty nice, but there are some space concerns (nothing major.)

We currently meet in the local airport's old ATC building, and we have 5 rooms available to us: Ground Ops, Air Ops, Squadron Offices, Comms, and SM HQ

[Duke Dillio]

My squadron had a very nice building which the local defense depot let us use, free of charge.  We have like 12 or so offices plus a conference room, and a very large classroom.  Unfortunately, the base police building was condemned so we were moved out of there.  We now meet in a former warehouse on the same depot.  It has been converted to office space.  We have a supply room, three offices, a kitchen/conference room, and a very large classroom.  All of this is free of charge due to an agreement with the depot and the wing.  I think our state director had something to do with it.

I might suggest that you talk to any military types around you.  Some of the Army National Guard houses have CAP squadrons.  If there is a military base, you should be okay asking them.  If not, I'd just keep looking around. 

[♠SARKID♠]

My squadron has a permanent home at our airfield.  We have a large hangar with six offices, a large classroom, comm room, a large supply loft, restrooms, and the hangar floor is large enough to accommodate four airplanes if we try real hard.  Theres also a large parking ramp isolated from the rest of the airfield so we use it as our formation/drill pad without fear of being in the way of airport operations.  From what I understand the building is owned by the county, paid for by Youth & Aviation, and we have exclusive rights to use it (I think thats how it goes - Col. Trossen, a bit of help?). 

[Shotgun]

I thought I'd expound a bit on our situation and provide some background.

Prior to our current space we used to meet at a local flight training center. The facility primarily did simulator and recurrent training for airline pilots. I personally really liked it - Free WiFi, lots of space, clean and modern;  but it had some drawbacks:

- First, it wasn't ours! We were limited to storing our gear in 3 file cabinets.

- Second - It wasn't actually in our Wing! (Olive Branch, MS basically borders Tennessee). Of course, most of our members don't actually live in Mississippi either so that may be a wash. For most of the unit, the commute was actually shorter. But that being said, It's kind of weird having our meetings outside of the community in which we are based.

- Finally, it couldn't be used as a mission base or command post in case of an Emergency.

We are on good terms with the building management so we might be able to meet there again in the interim.

The closest military installation is an ANG base at Memphis International Airport. However, one of the Tennessee squadrons already meets there. (But yet in another ironic twist, all the members of the ANG that belong to CAP are members of our squadron . . . along with our USAF liason officer).

Looking at the VFW Posts is a good idea.   And we also have a lead on a vacant building on the airport.

Stay tuned!

Spacing - MIKE

[lordmonar]

It looks like our Squadron is going to be homeless soon. We are currently meeting in an empty retail space in a strip mall across the street from our airport. We were allowed to use the space for free by the owner of the property until an interested party wanted to lease it.

We thought we had it made because the space was not being advertised, it had never been occupied, and in the down economy there is a glut of retail space in our community.

Of course nothing good lasts forever and it seems someone DOES want the space now.

We've known we may have to vacate at any time so it is not a shock It's been on the back burner ever since we moved into the retail space 8 months ago. But now we are actively looking for a new HQ.

My question for the CAP collective is:  where does your Squadron meet? Do you have to pay? And if so, how do you raise your funds?

Go to your local city government and see if they can help.  Also look to the VFW, AL, KofC, Masons, Elks, ect to see if they may help you out.

[jimmydeanno]

- Second - It wasn't actually in our Wing! (Olive Branch, MS basically borders Tennessee). Of course, most of our members don't actually live in Mississippi either so that may be a wash. For most of the unit, the commute was actually shorter. But that being said, It's kind of weird having our meetings outside of the community in which we are based.

That's ok, IIRC there isn't a single squadron in DCWG that meets inside the district itself...which makes me wonder...why is it a wing? [rhetorical]

[JohnKachenmeister]

Here is some "history" for you of the squadron's I've been in that might give you some ideas.

SQUADRON 1: Met in the basement of a church.  No fee was required, however, space was tight in terms of office/admin/storage.

SQUADRON 2: Met in an unused building at the local prison.  Had several offices, a 45 X 140 open area, restrooms, classroom space, etc.  No fee was required.

SQUADRON 3: Met on an AD AFB in the Honor Guard Building.  Had a logistics room and an 8X10 room - plus shared space (two car garage space).  No fee was required.

SQUADRON 3: Moved to unused building on the same base.  Had 5 rooms that were 25 X 40, restrooms, etc.  No fee was required.  Also includes an arrangement to use the State Department of Environmental Services building with prior notification.

SQUADRON 4: Meets on an ANG base in an unused portion of a maintenance hangar.  No fee is required.

POSSIBLE SQUADRON 5: Just inquired about starting a new squadron, VFW said they'd be able to provide us with one room - free of charge and be able to use the building as shared space.  Looking for a bit larger space though.

A squadron I commanded once met in a ROTC center.  The ROTC gave us one classroom.

Unfortunately, my successor in command got the PMS angry, and the unit got kicked out.

The next met in a VFW post, which was great.  They had an office of their own, and could use the entire post on Saturday mornings, when their meetings were held.  But, there WAS a downside.

A parent filed a Cadet Protection complaint saying that the "Unit met in a bar."  Actually, there was a bar in the post, and the unit had access to it.  Once in a while they would use it for testing, to separate those taking tests from those involved in other activities, but the bar was closed at the time.

The unit met from 8am to 11am, and the bar did not open until 1pm.  The liquor was locked up, but some bottles were visible, as were (turned off) electric signs advertising beer.

The IG considered it no big deal, but the Wing King disagreed, and the unit had to find a new home.

[Flying Pig]

We meet in a strip mall office for several years....and it cost us a ton.  (We wont revisit that issue)  We now meet in the National Guard Armory.

[mfantroy]

We are kinda in a similar situation, my Squadron (Mid-Rivers Senior Squadron) used a training trailer that was at a local airport how ever about two weeks ago everyone showed up for the Thursday meeting to find out that some time in the day before it had a major fire. all of our records were destroyed. The meeting last night was held in the PBR to discuss the next move, but I wasn't there so I don't know what was decided.

[sarflyer]

Try consulting with your town/city mayor or first selectman.  They have people that keep track of empty city buildings that you might be able to use at no cost.  Makes them look good!  Also local armory or military units might have extra space and most army and af units have regulations to support cap units with space.

The only real way to get a permenant location is to build your own building.  My dream for the past 16 years and still working on it.

Good luck!

[Duke Dillio]

The only real way to get a permenant location is to build your own building.  My dream for the past 16 years and still working on it.

Whoa, that's a lot of car washes.....

My dream is to build a CAP base somewhere in the midwest I think.  Complete with airfield, buildings, training areas, etc.  I only need to raise about $60 million I think.....

Back to the car wash...

[PhoenixRisen]

My current squadron meets out of an Air National Guard Station.  No fees, large meeting space, plus access to a classroom, huge outdoor drill space (and PT area) and our own outdoor Conex box for storage (courtesy of the CANG).

My new squadron I'm establishing is already set with space, as it's a school program squadron, permanantly attached to my host high school (link).  We have a large open football field for PT, numerous classrooms for any type of instruction as well as an office for administration and a large, brandnew state-of-the-art theater.

[Eclipse]

Look for office parks in the area with "for lease" signs, odds are they have unused space they may be inclined to let you use (don't infer any tax breaks, as they are not allowed in that situation).

You might also look around for houses for rent, and check with your local real estate agents - they'll know where the long-vacant buildings and offices are.

Sometimes having >anyone< occupying the space is better than an empty building.

Those of you in states who have Guard units that don't charge for their space should consider themselves blessed, thanks to the "...rob Peter to pay Paul.." fiscal policy of our state's Guv'na, our Guard units charge the CAP units to use them, and not a little, and they don't get any dedicated space.   

[Duke Dillio]

^You need a guv'na who can tehminate that deal.  He should cancel that whole issue with extreme prejudice.  I'll be bahk...