Off-Campus Venues & Event Registration

[Marenco-Garcia, Gabe]

Hi friends, 

From chatting with Exec, it seems that there is interest in hosting the boiler room off campus. I have relayed this info to Exec but wanted to make sure you all heard it from me as well. This is permitted; however, it is Exec's discretion as to whether or not this event can have alcohol served at it. I suspect that many of the venues you all are interested in might be hesitant to host an event without bar service or limited service (NA drinks only), because they are focused on revenue especially if we're looking at a weekend night. It doesn't hurt to ask though! 

Should we move forward with a venue and allow alcohol to be served, there should not be any such expenses outlined in the agreement including any food and beverage minimums. Basically, it would be a cash bar or whatever payment method they use at each individual's expense. If there is a food and beverage minimum, keep in mind that this should be a fixed price paid upfront which can include soft drinks and any food you all would be required to provide as part of the event registration process. I'll review these very carefully as well before signing, and I'm happy to talk through this more with you all when we get to that point. Additionally, we would pay them through Penn's vendor system. No P-Cards whatsoever, not even to put down a deposit or pay anything night of. (I helped the Senior Class Board navigate this process with Feb Club events.) 

So, in short, the good news is that this can be done. There's just a lot more attention to detail when considering an off-campus venue. 

Thanks!

Gabe

Gabe Marenco-Garcia, M.S. (they/them)

Associate Director | Office of Student Affairs

University Life | University of Pennsylvania

Please use the following link to schedule a meeting with me either in-person or virtually: https://calendly.com/marencog

 

I work and reside on the Indigenous territory known as Lenapehoking, the ancestral homelands of the Lenape people, past, present, and future.

 

[Marenco-Garcia, Gabe]

Sorry, a few more things: 

For historical context, when TRUM used to host shows at World Cafe Live, we only allowed limited bar service (soft drinks) to be served to limit any potential risks on an organizational level. Their shows used to go much later (9p-12a) and sometimes on a Thursday night AND it was closer proximity, so it was safe to say that folks made other plans before those events which is totally fine! And, this doesn't mean there is "precedent", per se. The upside of working with off-campus venues is that their security handles different types of situations on any given night. However, keep in mind that these venues typically have contracted services that are non-negotiable (i.e. production), so unfortunately, SPEC Sound would likely not be able to provide their services. 

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From: Marenco-Garcia, Gabe <mare...@upenn.edu>
Sent: Monday, March 2, 2026 11:31 AM
To: Jazz and Grooves Public Email <jazzand...@specevents.net>; SPEC Sound <so...@specevents.net>
Cc: David Garcia Maldonado <da...@specevents.net>; Teja Vankireddy <te...@specevents.net>; Taylor Castro <tay...@specevents.net>
Subject: Off-Campus Venues & Event Registration