Cambridge Venue for Linux Kernel Summit in '07

[Ellie Young]

Hello Operation Cambridge Folks,

USENIX has been investigating the various options supplied by this  
list  to see if we can obtain a viable venue for next year's Linux  
Kernel Summit.   Here's a report, our recommendation, and next steps.

We sent specs to "Conference Cambridge" which disseminates specs and  
rfp's to the Cambridge universities/colleges.  Then, if any of them  
have the space/dates, etc., they contact the customer.  We heard back  
from:

Clare College:  they  only have a lecture hall (vs. round table  
seating that we prefer) for the #'s we have attending.
Queens College cannot "do rounds in lecture theatre or dining hall"
Moller Centre seats 70 "cabaret style" but not 4-5 per banquet round  
per our specs
St John's College has a lecture hall only. The seats do "roll  
back" (which was stated in one of this list's e-mails), but it  
becomes a badminton court which is used by the college.  They insist  
they can only offer the tiered lecture seating.

We also sent the specs to the Cambridge Tourist Ofc  
(cambridge.gov.uk) who sent them to the hotels. We looked at every  
hotel listed on the "Cambridge Area Guide - Cambridge, England  
Conference Centres and Event Space" to determine if they had what we  
needed.  Only the DeVere University Arms did (from whom we have a  
proposal) and the Crowne Plaza looked like they MIGHT.  However, the  
Crowne Plaza, after several e-mails clarifying their space, does not.

Recommendation:

DeVere University Arms
Dates:  Sept. 4-7, 2007  (note: Sept 3 is a holiday in USA, so we  
figure the workshop could  be held either 5-7 or 6-7.
Ballroom is 2944 sq ft, smaller than the room in the Ottawa Congress  
Centre (the round tables will be tight, but Ted thinks it's doable.)

Prices are in “packages”.  We recommend that we go with:

Day delegate:  Approx $94 USD per person
Incl am coffee break, finger buffet lunch, pm tea break, flipchart,  
lcd proj/screen, water in mtg room, “main”mtg room rental.  (they  
assure us that the lunch will not leave people hungry :-)

We could book the conference with the Day delegate pkg and let people  
just book their own hotel rooms.   This might be better since there  
are probably other lower-priced hotels nearby.

We will arrange dinners/evening activities at venues close by (need  
help from the locals w/ their suggestions).

Residential guest parking approx $19 USD

Connectivity:
Sleeping rooms:  high speed broadband internet in rms charged at $23  
USD per 24 hrs
Meeting rooms:  wireless broadband internet access charged at approx  
$100 USD/day.

Next Steps:

We would appreciate hearing from this list   as soon as possible  
about whether this venue is a good one (no later than 9/22/06).    We  
would also appreciate having someone local be our main contact (to  
help with any logistical issues, etc.) And last, can whoever is  
managing this list please add me and Cat Allman to it?

ellie at usenix.org
cat at usenix.org

We are under deadline pressure to make a decision soon, since we have  
to release the meeting space we are holding in Ottawa in July by next  
week.

Thank you,

Ellie Young
Executive Director
USENIX Association
ellie at usenix.org