Vendor Handbook Restaurant/Bar Vendor Downtown Rochester Summer Market and Music Festival Organized by the Rochester Downtown Alliance Thursdays, June 2-August 25, 2016 Updated: December 16, 2015
Table of Contents Section 1: Definitions... 1 Section 2: Schedule & Important Dates... 1 Section 3: Costs and Late Fees... 2 Section 4: Reimbursement, Cancellation & Termination Policies... 2 Section 5: Layout/Setup/Loading... 3 Section 6: Parking... 4 Section 7: Presentation... 4 Section 8: Food/Beverage... 4 Section 9: Additional Information... 6
P a g e 1 2016 Thursdays on First & 3 rd Downtown Rochester Summer Market and Music Festival Handbook Restaurant/Bar Vendor Please note: Information is subject to change at the discretion of the Rochester Downtown Alliance (RDA). Section 1 - Definitions 1. In order to be considered a Special Service District Restaurant/Bar, your business must meet the following requirements: a. The business primary address must be located within the Special Service District. b. The business must pay tax to the Special Service District. c. The business must serve customers from a restaurant/bar within the Special Service District. 2. RDA gives first priority to any Special Service District Restaurant/Bar that applies by March 4, 2016. There is a 23% restaurant/bar cap for the market to avoid oversaturation. If the amount of special service district restaurants/bars interested in participating exceeds the total cap of 23%, no other restaurant/bar will be allowed in the market at that time. If under the 23% cap, spaces for other restaurants/bars are given second priority from within the City of Rochester and are either placed in market, if room, or will be placed on the waiting list. Section 2- Schedule & Important Dates 1. Schedule: Every Thursday, June 2 through August 25 (13 weeks) 2. Event Hours: 8:00-10:30am 11:00am 11:30am-1:15pm 5:00-6:00pm 7:00-8:30pm 8:30-10:00pm Load-in and Setup (Different times for specific areas) Event Start Time Lunchtime Entertainment (main stages) Afternoon Performances (main stages) Evening Performances (main stages) Teardown and Load-Out 3. Street Closure: Promptly at 10pm, streets will be re-opened to through traffic. All vendors must be packed up and out of the event site by 10pm. 4. Downtown Merchant Sidewalk Sale: Thursday, July 21, 2016 Downtown merchants will be using space on Peace Plaza and the North section of First Avenue. If you would like to participate on this date, please note you may be moved to an alternative location for that week. 5. Application Window: January 4- March 4, 2016 at 5 p.m. (CST) 6. Welcome Packets Emailed: Friday, April 1, 2016 Welcome packets will be emailed to accepted applicants at the email address provided on your application.
P a g e 2 Section 3 Costs and Late Fees 1. Cost of (1) Booth Space (10x10 canopy): $175.00 per week a. The RDA Policy Committee will permit (1) booth space per individual restaurant/bar. If a business possesses separate tax ID numbers for multiple downtown locations, additional booth spaces will be taken into consideration. 2. Sales Tax: Vendor s responsibility; ST19 Form due to RDA by Wednesday, May 11, 2016 3. Invoices: Sent with payment options in welcome packets 4. Payment Options: Please do not make any payments until accepted into the market. Vendors will be mailed an invoice with the balance due. a. Payment in full (in advance of market) Full payments for market dates in advance are due by May 11, 2016. Vendors who secure 10 or more market dates will be offered a 10% discount off the total invoiced amount. b. Two Payments This plan is only available to vendors who have secured at least 4 market dates. An initial payment of 50% of the total will be due in advance of the market by May 11, 2016. Payment of the remaining 50% balance will be due mid-season on July 14, 2016. If your remaining balance is not paid by July 14, then you will forfeit the remainder of the market. There will be no discount offered for the two-payment plan. 5. Wait List Adds: If you are on the waiting list and agree to fill a vendor space at the market, payment will be due via credit card over the phone upon acceptance of the dates. 6. Late Fees: Any payment not received by the aforementioned deadline are subject to a late fee. Late fees are added to the original invoiced amount and are structured as followed: 1-15 Days Late 16-30 Days Late 31-45 Days Late 46+ Days Late 5% of amount due 7% of amount due 10% of amount due 12% of amount due Section 4 - Reimbursement, Cancellation & Termination Policies 1. All outstanding invoices or payments received are non-refundable unless specifically stated otherwise by RDA. 2. Cancellations: a. If RDA Cancels: This is an outdoor market. Rain and other unpredictable factors remain a possibility. If your product/service or setup cannot handle outdoor weather, this may not be the market for you. The event is immediately over when evacuation orders have been issued by RDA staff. i. No reimbursements will be applied to any event dates cancelled by RDA due to weather or other unpredictable factors, as all invoiced amounts and payments are already accounted for and applied towards marketing the event, entertainment, and logistical components. b. If Vendor Cancels: If a vendor decides to cancel any market dates, please give as much advanced notice as possible so that staff may try to fill the booth space from the waiting list. i. No refunds will be given if the vendor cancels
P a g e 3 3. Termination: The RDA reserves the right to terminate any vendor in violation of any policy or procedure, including ill-behavior toward RDA staff and volunteers, event attendees, and/or other vendors, without warning. No refund will be issued. Section 5 - Layout/Setup/Loading 1. Refer to the event layout maps. There will be an online interactive event map available throughout the summer. The link can be found here: http://www.downtownrochestermn.com/events/tof 2. Booth availability and location requests are considered by the RDA Policy Committee under the following factors: Overall quality and diversification of the event layout Special Service District business vs. non-special Service District business Proximity to the applicant s restaurant/bar establishment Proximity to competing/like vendors and/or downtown businesses Electricity needs Total number of years the applicant has participated in the event Total number of event dates requested by the vendor applicant The number of restaurant/bar establishments with unique tax ID numbers owned by the applicant Note: Requests will be taken in to consideration but are not guaranteed 3. Vendors must be set up to take sales from 11:00am to 8:30pm. No Exceptions. To better organize the flow of vendor load-in, each vendor will be sent a specific time to unload. Event barricades will close by 10:45am. Vendors must come prepared with enough products in order to stay open until 8:30pm. If for some reason a vendor sells out of their product, they are still expected to stay until 8:30pm in order to present a full market. Those who leave early without notifying an RDA staff member may be asked to forfeit the following week s market. 4. The event will only allow load-in and load-out in designated areas and times. RDA asks that vendors be considerate of other vendors and patrons during load-in/load-out. Load-in procedure: Follow directions of RDA staff/volunteers to your assigned load-in/load-out space Swiftly unpack vehicle Return after parking your vehicle to set up your booth Do NOT start setting up your booth space until your vehicle is out of the event site Load-out procedure: Pack up all product and booth before retrieving your vehicle Retrieve your vehicle from parking Follow directions of RDA staff/volunteers to your assigned load-out space Swiftly pack vehicle Follow RDA staff/volunteers slowly driving your vehicle out of the event zone 5. Vehicles are not allowed within the market space until AFTER the music ends and the crowds have dispersed. RDA will open area for vehicles once the majority of the people have cleared from the path.
P a g e 4 If barricades are closed, you will have to circle the block until RDA staff opens the street. Do NOT try to drive into a space with people still in the street unless assisted by RDA staff. Do NOT interfere with traffic by parking on the street outside of the barricades. Violators may be ticketed by law enforcement. Use the utmost caution when entering the market space with your vehicle. 6. No vehicle is allowed to pull onto the Peace Plaza, and no one is allowed to load-in/out from the Mayo Clinic turnaround circle on 2 nd Avenue. Violators will be ticketed by law enforcement. 7. Each vendor MUST provide a canopy (10x10), their own tables and signage for their booth. The canopy MUST be weighted down with at least 30 lbs. per leg. This is extremely important as your tent, or items within it, can blow around and cause injuries or property damage. 8. A sign or banner with your business name is recommended (12 x20 minimum) so that customers know whom to look for when they return for more business. The signs / banners are to be affixed to your canopy. No signs or banners are allowed to be hung or posted on plaza light towers or adjacent buildings, in addition no sandwich boards are allowed outside of your booth area. Business cards and other marketing materials are highly recommended. 9. There is limited electricity for vendor usage. Food vendors will first be accommodated for electrical needs. If you need electricity for your booth, specify your request including the amount of voltage you need and what you will use electricity for in your application. Note that electricity is not guaranteed if requested. Section 6 - Parking 1. Parking may be arranged directly with Lanier Parking Solutions: 507-282-4545. A variety of parking options for both vehicles and trailers/oversized vehicles are available in downtown Rochester. Please visit the City of Rochester s Public Parking Ramps, http://www.rochesterparking.com/, to review your options and make appropriate accommodations. 2. To accommodate more vendors, NO VEHICLES or TRAILERS will be allowed to remain on the market space or behind your booth. Personal vehicles and trailers will be allowed into the market street space during load-in and load-out times only. Section 7 - Presentation 1. No smoking by any vendors/employees in the event perimeter: This is Health Department rule, and will be strictly enforced for all event vendors. 2. You must remove any trash created by your stand, and provide your own receptacle; hauling away upon loadout. The trash / recycling containers set in the market area by RDA are for attendees use and not intended to handle vendor-generated trash. Bring a broom and dust pan to clean your area before, during and after the event to keep the market user-friendly. Section 8 - Food/Beverage 1. Food Vouchers: Band members will be given a food voucher to be redeemed at any Thursdays on First restaurant vendor for one food item valued at $7.00. You may hand in any food vouchers to RDA staff to receive a reimbursement check worth $7.00 per food voucher.
P a g e 5 2. Thursdays on First & 3 rd branded cups: All alcoholic beverages MUST be served out of Thursdays on First branded cups, which may be purchased through the RDA. This is a requirement from the City of Rochester. If you are serving alcohol to the customer in the original container (can/bottle), you are putting your ability and the entire events ability to vend alcohol at the event in jeopardy. a. If your restaurant or bar is found not using the branded cups for serving alcoholic beverages, you will be terminated from the event for the remainder of the season and forfeit your deposit. b. The RDA will invoice your business halfway through the season and again after the last market date. Full payment must be provided to the RDA by September 30, 2016. If payment has not been received by this date, your business is subject to a 25% late fee. 3. Ice/water emptying: If your booth requires water or ice, DO NOT dump it at the event. Rather, remove it to an offsite location or your own property to dump. Peace Plaza restaurants are NOT excluded from this rule. Please do not dump ice on grates, planters, or in the grass area. If a restaurant or vendor is caught in violation of this and as a consequence gets other vendors products wet or damages them, the vendor dumping the ice/water will be expected to cover any damages that result and may be terminated from the event. a. Any vendors caught in violation of this policy may incur additional costs from Parks & Recreation or Rochester Public Works. 4. Mats and Stain Removal: Food vendors are to provide mats to protect the plaza, sidewalk and street surfaces from food preparation/ serving stains. Plan to purchase one for the event if you have not already done so, or be prepared to pay for stain removal. a. If a restaurant or vendor is caught in violation of this and as a consequence leaves stains on the pavement or damages the grassy area, the vendor may be asked to not return to the market and will be charged damage or cleaning fees by Parks & Recreation. 5. All food vendors are required to obtain appropriate permitting from the Olmsted County Department of Health. You must provide a photo-copy of your license to RDA by May 11. Please contact: Olmsted County Public Health Services Dan Delano delano.dan@co.olmsted.mn.us (507) 328-7418 6. Restaurants and bars who are accepted into the market are responsible for providing their own liquor liability insurance showing coverage for the area of Thursdays on First to the RDA s office by no later than May 11. This can be dropped off at the RDA office, or emailed to Karli McElroy at kmcelroy@rdowntownalliance.com The Liquor Liability Insurance must include the following: List The Rochester Downtown Alliance and the City of Rochester as the certificate holders Under the description: Event: Thursdays on First & 3rd, Location: Peace Plaza & 1 st Ave SW, Dates: June 2 August 25, 2016. The RDA & City of Rochester are listed as additional insured as respects to the General Liability policy when required by a written contract. 7. RDA requires vendors to sell or promote product within their assigned booth space, unless prior approval is made with RDA. This is not required just for food, but for all booth items.
P a g e 6 8. RDA staff will contact the Olmsted Department of Public Health if weather conditions are questionable, and will notify your business or restaurant if it is unsafe for your business to be serving food at that time. Section 9 Additional Information 1. You must be 18 years of age or older to legally enter into this contract. 2. Weather: To more effectively communicate RDA staff decisions made due to weather conditions, the RDA requires that each vendor provides an email address on his/her application. Emails by RDA staff will be sent out to notify vendors of threatening weather. 3. The RDA or any associated businesses or sponsors are not responsible for any accidents that take place as a result of your vending at the event. 4. The RDA is not responsible for any goods that you sell that in any way cause harm to the purchaser of your goods or services provided at the event. 5. In the event that a vendor is either unable or unwilling to fulfill contracted participation in the event for any reason, the vendor must notify Laura Engelman (lengelman@rdowntownalliance.com) immediately and the event committee reserves the right to fill that vendor space with another vendor from the wait list. (See Section 3 regarding reimbursements). 6. All authorized vendors participating in the event shall be individually and severally responsible to the RDA for any loss, personal injury, deaths, and/or any other damage that may occur as a result of the vendor s negligence or that of its servants, agents, and employees, and all vendors hereby agree to indemnify and save the RDA harmless from any loss, cost, damages, and other expenses, including attorneys fees, suffered or incurred by the RDA by reasons of the vendors negligence or that of its servants, agents and employees; provided that the vendors shall not be responsible nor required to indemnify the RDA for negligence of the City, its servants, agents or employees. No insurance is provided by the RDA to participants in the street market. If you have any questions, please contact the RDA Community Engagement Manager, Laura Engelman at lengelman@rdowntownalliance.com Rochester Downtown Alliance 4 3 rd Street SW, Suite B Rochester, MN 55902 (507) 216-9884