Club Vote: Difference between revisions

Clubs - member initiated activities and meetings which are often open to public participation - have never been codified in the bylaws or votes. They arise from the [[Membership_agreement#Guests|Membership Agreement]] which specifically permits members to invite visitors to the space as long as they are supervised, and the foundational concept of [[Just_Fucking_Do_It|JFDI]]. The oldest documented continuing group activity that could be called a club was [https://pumpingstationone.org/about/| Power Wheels Racing Series in 2009], only a year after Pumping Station: One was officially founded, and is now known as [[Power Racing Team|Power Racing Series]]. It has since formed its own non-profit, but continues to use Pumping Station: One for storage and meetings. [[NERP|NERP or Not Exclusively Raspberry Pi]] also has a long history, hosted by Ed Bennet since 2012. Both of these groups have increased the profile of Pumping Station: One and been of great benefit to the membership.

[[File:Shellies-arts-crafts.png|thumb|left|alt=An archived calendar posting for Shellie's Arts and Crafts night]]

I can attest to the effectiveness of clubs bringing in new members. When Shellie was Arts Area Host, she organized regular craft nights and put them on the calendar as open to the public. I had toured Pumping Station before, but regular interaction with members at crafts night was what lead me to eventually become a member myself. It should be noted that while many clubs are long-lived, some are ephemeral. There are no longer public craft nights in Arts, but several other great activities have sprung up to take its place.

Most 'clubs' require only a room to meet, and are completely member organized without any input or direct supervision from the board. Other groups are organized or develop in coordination with Area Hosts, who give them funding and area space to develop. For example, photography is a natural extension of the Arts Area. Recycling activities in the space follows a more circuitous route from the Specialty 3d Area, arising from projects to recycle 3d printing waste back into filament and create new filament from single-use plastic. Cycle Station: One, a popular cycling repair group that frequently organizes group rides, receives its funding from the Arts Area budget.

Power Racing Series (PRS) is another controversial inhabitant of the General Area. Cars in various states of repair are stored under the pallet racks and tables, and along with shelving for parts it occupies more square footage than the 3d Printing and Specialty 3d Areas combined. [[Agreement between Power Racing Series and Pumping Station: One|The only agreement between the Membership and PRS on record is from 2013]] and expired in that year. In 2020, [[Talk:Board_Meeting_Notes_2020-01-07|Michael Skilton petitioned the board]] to reconcile PRS's activity with the Tidy Space policy by making PRS storage an official Area and remove them from the tables, but nothing ever came of that.