Hello people! We have some (good) news from the Montreal bid team! First, we're happy to share with you that our intention to host DebConf17 has become official. Please check the wikipage for information and nice pictures we've collected so far: https://wiki.debconf.org/wiki/DebConf17/Bids/Montreal We've recently met with the people in charge of our main venue and they'd be happy to welcome us. They are currently preparing a contract model. This means we should have final prices for the venue in the weeks to come. Until then, here are a few points we're able to clarify: * Access 24/7: yes, we have it! A security guard is needed for the night time at our charge. It's about 32 CAD / hour. * Inside dorms: we've asked for 18 class rooms for indoor dorms. It fits about 10 people in each room and according to the venue staff this arrangement is quite usual in other events. We could get up to 24 classes (240 people in dorms). There are enough bathrooms and shower rooms in the venue. * For those who are not comfortable with the classroom dorm arrangement, there's a hotel (http://www.hoteluniverselmontreal.com/en/) which is located 1.8km from the venue (20min walking, 8min by bus, 6min by bike). We've not contacted them yet but will do so in the weeks to come. * So far the venue has no other reservation for 2017 yet, so the dates are really flexible for us at this moment. * Since we don't need exclusive access to the cafeteria and to the "student café", use of these spaces won't be charged. If we want to have exclusive access to those spaces a reservation will be needed. * We can either negotiate the food service with the local caterer, or have external catering, or even both together. There are no restrictions regarding bringing external food to the venue. * Alcoholic beverages are allowed in the venue once we get a permit. It costs about 450 CAD for the whole event. (https://www.racj.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/documents/Accueil/Formulaires_et_publications/Formulaires/Alcool/Anglais/RACJ-1060.ang-D.pdf) * Child care is possible in the venue and a room was asked for that purpose. The venue is located at a 10mins walking distance from the huge Space for life ( http://espacepourlavie.ca/en ), which provides many activies for children. The venue also has a huge soccer field outside which can also be enjoyed by the kids. * The indoor swimming pool may be available at a charge, but they can't assure that since there will be some renovation work in the next years. * 450 parking spaces available, we can rent a section or have passes provided, recreational vehicles (RV) are accepted upon notification. The regular price for the venue, including dorms for about 180 people and security officer for 24/7 access, is around 50k CAD (37k US - 35k EUR). Still, we're optimistic about having a good discount on top of it! As always, don't hesitate to ask us questions if you need some clarifications. Yours, -- Montreal Bid Team
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