MARC Club Station
Our goal is to develop a wish list for a club station for MARC. To help accomplish that, your input is requested so that we can make sure that we don’t overlook anything.
This page will evolve and be updated on a regular basis as we receive more input and complete more research. So, check back often and please leave your comments and suggestions below.
Note: One of the key things that we need to have guidance from members on is the budget for both the space and also for the equipment, furnishings and fixtures for the station.
Space Layout – Draft 1 – 200 sq. ft.
Right now, our current working theory is to try to find 200 ft.² of space. This is our hypothetical floor plan as of right now:
The ideas behind the above are:
- To have two operating positions.
- We would have at least six chairs, with perhaps some additional fold up chairs, so that the club house could be used for teaching and demonstration purposes.
- Each position would have its own rig(s), computer and large LCD screen that is 32 inches to 42 inches in size. The screens could be wall-mounted so that any audience could see what was being shown. Ideally, it may make sense to also have a larger screen in between that might be more beneficial for training purposes and demonstrations.
- Other wall space for maps, QSL cards, etc.?
- The space would include a couple of file cabinets, a printer and a bookshelf.
- With a larger space, we could accommodate additional operating positions and/or additional space for larger audiences, storage or for other club needs. With 300 ft.² to 400 ft.², there would probably be enough space for us to hold our club meetings.
MARC Club – Station Setup
Below is my first guess for the furnishings, fixtures and equipment that will be needed for the above station. These are ordered by priority with the idea that we draw the line at, say, Priority 5 as our starting point station – with everything that has a lower priority be added at some later time.
Once again, your comments, suggestions and recommendations would be greatly appreciated – both for what needs to be included and what you would recommend as priority.
The decision for whether we use existing equipment or acquire new equipment will be based on the approved budget for the station set up.
Please click Spreadsheet to download your own Acrobat file of the above. That way, you can print it out and mark it up the way you believe it should be. Then, give me a copy of the marked up pages at the next club meeting or email it to me.
Tell Us What You Think
The above are just the first drafts of this process. Your help and participation are very much wanted and appreciated.
Please let me know your thoughts, suggestions, additions, ideas, etc. in the comments below or by directly emailing me at Robert@K3RRR.com.
73,
Robert
K3RRR
PS: We were originally tasked by the amendment to the original motion to find a commercial space for the club station so that we would not be constrained to hours of operation that a government entity space might require.
Based on the analysis, to date, we are finding that commercial space is running $14-$26 per square foot with the minimal space available, in most cases, being 1,000 ft.².
For that space and for that rental rate this translates to an annual cost to the club of $14,000 to $26,000.
Additionally, this amount does not include the following: utilities, facilities and contents insurance, space finish out costs, maintenance, taxes, common area maintenance, etc.
Also, many of these industrial spaces do not allow the kinds of outdoor antennas that would be required for a club station.
For all these reasons, we recommend that the club membership and Board of Directors reconsider their constraint to only use commercial space and, instead, allow the committee to pursue any and all spaces that might work for the club’s needs.
PPS: Below are two Acrobat files that list some of the properties that were considered:
Industrial Properties Rockville 1
Industrial Properties Rockville 2
Just click the above to view the Acrobat files.