FUDCon:Bid for Tempe 2011

Location

About Tempe

Tempe Arizona is the cultural and technical center of the Phoenix metropolitan area in central Arizona, USA. Tempe is easily accessible and the location's climate guarantees a beautiful FUDcon with highs in the 60s and 70s throughout most of the winter. Tempe's vibrant Mill Avenue boasts countless shops, restaurants and other venues for entertainment. Tempe is easily accessible via interstate or flying in to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. Tempe is also home to one of the largest Universities in the United States, Arizona State University, providing us with the chance to reach many new users and contributors.

Reference Links

• City of Tempe
• Tempe Convention and Visitors Bureau
• Mill Avenue - Main thoroughfare in Tempe
• Arizona State University
• Phoenix Wikipedia page
• Tempe Wikipedia page

Major Local Airports

Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport (Airport Code: PHX) is the major airport servicing the greater Phoenix Metro area.

The following airlines have flights going in / coming out of Sky Harbor:

• Terminal 2:
  • Alaska
  • Continental
  • Great Lakes
  • United / TED

• Terminal 3:
  • AirTran
  • American
  • Delta
  • Frontier
  • Hawaiian
  • JetBlue
  • Midwest
  • Sun Country

• Terminal 4 (Terminal 4 is also the International Terminal for Sky Harbor):
  • Aeromexico
  • Air Canada
  • British Airways
  • Southwest
  • US Airways / America West
  • US Airways / America West Express (Mesa Airlines)
  • Westjet

Local Mass Transit

Tempe is served by the Phoenix Metro Light Rail, and also has local bus lines.

Light Rail

Valley METRO Light Rail. The Light Rail provides transportation from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport to downtown Tempe.

• The Light Rail is available to take from the airport to downtown Tempe. The stop at Mill Avenue and Third Street is two very short blocks from the proposed hotel for FUDCon, Tempe Mission Palms.

• To access the Light Rail from the airport, one must take the Phoenix Airport Shuttle from their terminal to the Light Rail station at 44th Street and Washington. Detailed directions are located here.

• A one-ride pass for the light rail is $1.75; a full-day pass for the light rail and city buses is $3.50. 5-packs of full-day passes can be purchased online, in advance, for $17.50, and should be received within 5-7 days.

Local Restaurants

Many of the local restaurants, as well as other entertainment / shopping, can be found on the Mill Avenue website.

The following restaurants are within walking distance of both hotels being considered.

Sit-down Restaurants (aka, Finer Dining)

• Rula Bula Irish Pub and Restaurant. 401 S. Mill Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85281 480-929-9500 ((note: this is also a serious college bar - Friday and Saturday nights can be crowded.)
• RA Sushi 411 South Mill Avenue Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 303-9800
• Caffe Boa 398 S Mill Ave, Ste. 101, Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 968-9112
• House of Tricks 114 E 7th St, Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 968-1114
• PF Chang's 740 S Mill Ave, #140, Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 731-4600
• Casey Moore's Oyster House 850 South Ash Avenue Tempe, AZ 85281 (480) 968-9935 (note: this is also a serious college bar - Friday and Saturday nights can be crowded.)

Fast(er) Food

• Arizona Bun Devils Hot Dogs - 1 E 6th St
• Corleone's Authentic Philly Steaks - 411 S Mill Ave
• CUPZ Coffee - 777 S College Ave
• Dave's Dog House - 130 E University Dr
• Dunkin' Donuts - 425 S Mill Ave
• Extreme Pita - 777 S College Ave
• Fatburger - 414 S Mill Ave
• In Season Deli - 414 S Mill Ave
• Jack-in-the-Box - 721 S Mill Ave
• Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches - 680 S Mill Ave
• Ma'i Island Grill - 705 S Forest Ave
• Med Fresh Grill - 414 S Mill Ave
• MoJo Frozen Yogurt - 350 S Mill Ave
• The Munchies Cafe - 11 E. 6th Street
• Pita Pit - 122 E University Dr
• Romancing the Bean - 80 E Rio Salado Pkwy
• Salam's Market & Deli - 616 S Forest Dr
• Silver Mine Subs - 414 S Mill Ave
• Slices Pizza - 11 E 6th St
• Starbucks Coffee - 420 S Mill Ave
• Thirsty Dog 2 Go - 15 W 5th St

Hotel

• Tempe Mission Palms
  • 60 E. 5th St. Tempe, AZ 85281
  • 480-894-1400

Tempe Mission Palms Details

Location: Tempe Mission Palms 60 E. 5th St. Tempe, AZ 85281 Phone: (480)894-1400

Alternate Venues for Meeting (not in a hotel

Brickyard on Mill Avenue

• Brickyard on Mill
  • Building for School of Arts, Media + Engineering - may have meeting space
  • 699 S. Mill Ave.
  • Tempe, AZ 85281

ASU Memorial Union

• ASU Memorial Union
  • Meetings and Events Services
  • ASU Memorial Union Meetings and Events Services information and rate sheet

Availability

ASU Memorial Union is available for non-university-affiliated events during the following time periods (that are applicable to FUDCon):

• Last 2 weeks of December
• First 2 weeks of January
• ANY Friday, Saturday, and/or Sunday

Room Spaces and Costs

A map of the ASU Memorial Union meeting rooms is located on page 3 of the Memorial Union maps document.

ASU charges for space in the MU based upon a tiered system which is partially based on what affiliation, if any you have with the university.

FUDCon would possibly qualify as a Category II, if we can procure University sponsorship from a department, or Category III (None-university related event). I don't know if Cat. II requires us to have a certain percentage of students vs. non-students; this is something to look into.

There are ~25 rooms available on the second floor of the Memorial Union, ranging in size from 16 occupants to 575 occupants. Here are some examples of pricing:

Yuma - Occupancy 25 - Category II, $140; Category III, $300. Turquoise Ballroom - Occupancy 180-249 - Category II, $500; Category III, $1600 Pima Auditorium - Occupancy 150 - Category II, $260; Category III, $800 Mohave - Occupancy 66 - Category II, $180; Category III, $600 Gold - Occupancy 80 - Category II, $180; Category III, $600

Full pricing can be seen here on page 2 of the Memorial Union Events and Services document.

Additionally, the first floor of the MU has a place called "Sparky's Den" - 8 bowling lanes, 15 billiards tables, and video games. It can be reserved - costs are not detailed on the website. Alcohol permits can also be obtained.

Food and Catering

The MU has an in house catering service. Please see MU's Catering information for more details. Food may also be purchased from any of the dining venues IN the MU or from Domino's Pizza for events held in the MU.

Memorial Union Restaurants include:

• Zoca! Mexican
• Papa John's Pizza
• Extreme Pita
• Jump Asian
• Chick-fil-a
• Taco Bell
• Starbucks
• Einstein Bagels
• Cold Stone Creamery
• Union Market
• Burger King
• Quizno's Subs
• Jamba Juice

Shirts!

Brand X has a tee-shirt shop / printing place in the Memorial Union, as well as off-campus. This would be cool for those who want to get shirts but didn't sign up in time, etc. We could drop off the official logo / etc for them to have available to make shirts for whomever.

Transportation to Event

Flight estimates from kayak.com by Mel Chua 04:51, 14 April 2010 (UTC)

Costs from BOS (Boston, MA)

• Thursday, December 2 - Wednesday, December 8 = $232 as of 4/13
• Thursday, January 13 - Wednesday, January 19 = $229 as of 4/13

Costs from RDU (Raleigh, NC)

• Thursday, December 2 - Wednesday, December 8 = $232 as of 4/13
• Thursday, January 13 - Wednesday, January 19 = $232 as of 4/13

Costs from ORD (Chicago, IL)

• Thursday, December 2 - Wednesday, December 8 = $313 as of 4/13
• Thursday, January 13 - Wednesday, January 19 = $313 as of 4/13

Costs from LAX (Los Angeles, CA)

• Thursday, December 2 - Wednesday, December 8 = $124 as of 4/13
• Thursday, January 13 - Wednesday, January 19 = $124 as of 4/13

Costs from JFK (New York, NY)

• Thursday, December 2 - Wednesday, December 8 = $301 as of 4/13
• Thursday, January 13 - Wednesday, January 19 = $301 as of 4/13

Costs from LHR (London, UK)

• Thursday, December 2 - Thursday, December 9 = $758 as of 4/15
• Thursday, January 13 - Thursday, January 20 = $758 as of 4/15

There's no return flight on Wednesdays, hence Thursday was checked.

FUDPub Options

• Rawhide. In south Chandler. It would require renting us a few buses to get there - it takes about 27 minutes, per google maps. It is a western town - bull riding, food and drinks, train / stagecoach rides, "old time" photos. Oh, and you can have people put in the fake jail.
• Rula Bula Irish Pub and Restaurant. Directly out front of the Tempe mission palms.
• Gameworks

Family Fun

Thinking of bringing your family to Tempe? There are tons of activities for families - not just in Tempe, but also in the metropolitan Phoenix area. Or, take an extra day or two and see some of Arizona's sights.

In town

• McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park. In Scottsdale. Large train to ride on in the park ($1!), carousel rides, and model railroad exhibits. (If your child can't get enough of Thomas the Train, there is also a gift shop with lots of toys. I'll leave it to you to decide if you want to go in!)
• Fiddlesticks Family Fun Park. In south Tempe. Go-karts, outdoor mini-golf, batting cage, arcade.
• Rawhide. No, not THAT Rawhide. This one is a Western Town, with stagecoach rides, train rides, shootin' galleries, mechanical bulls, and lots of food. In south Chandler.
• Arizona Science Center. In downtown phoenix.
• Children's Museum of Phoenix. In downtown Phoenix. Hands-on, interactive exhibits for youngsters (birth - 10).
• Phoenix Zoo. On the border of Phoenix and Tempe - very close to FUDCon. Voted one of the top 5 zoos in the nation for kids!
• Desert Botanical Gardens. In Tempe.
• Shopping. Plenty of unique places to go - Cabela's, IKEA, Bass Pro Shops, and a LEGO store are just a few of the retail outlets you won't find everywhere. We also have lots of malls. Outdoor shopping includes Biltmore Fashion Park (in Phoenix), Kierland Commons (in north Scottsdale), and Tempe Marketplace - as well as Mill Avenue shopping! - and can be great in January. Nearby indoor shopping malls include Scottsdale Fashion Square and Chandler Fashion Center.

Out of Town

Take a trip up north - you can check out the Grand Canyon (3+ hrs from Phoenix), or check out the red rocks in Sedona (2 hours from Phoenix). The Petrified Forest and Painted Desert are in the northeastern part of Arizona. You could also take a trip to the northwestern part of Arizona and take a drive over Hoover Dam (on your way to Laughlin, NV - hah!). If you want to head south - Kartchner Caverns is a huge cave (lit, with tours) with amazing rock formations, or you could head to Ramsey Canyon if you're into birdwatching.

And about two hours to the south is scenic Tucson, Arizona. If astronomy is your thing, there is Kitt Peak National Observatory for your touring pleasure. You can also take tours of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Pima Air and Space Museum, andAMARG, the "air plane grave yard"

Pros and Cons of Proposed Location

Everyone flying in from the east coast gets to essentially SLEEP IN - vs. the west coasters having to wake up three hours early when FUDCon is in an eastern location. --Rbergero 05:03, 13 May 2010 (UTC)

The weather provides a great environment for possibly hacking outdoors, walking around and not freezing in the middle of winter. It's also a great escape from the cold which could help with productivity. --Herlo 22:30, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

Variety of location is of key importance. To involve more possible contributors to participate in the Fedora Project, it would seem logical that having events throughout North America would be justified. While the expense is a bit higher for some (the East coast), it provides an opportunity for those who live nearer the West to attend FUDCon. Especially those who have heard about free software, but aren't sure how to go about getting involved. The new venue provides another way to encourage new contributors to join up and get involved. --Herlo 22:30, 12 May 2010 (UTC)

Insane state laws that could result in conference attendees being arrested and held as illegal immigrants. (Note: Dear anonymous submitter, please feel free to submit your own proposal for a better state. Perhaps we could have it in Boston, where witches used to be burned at the stake? Seriously, though, either put something together, be more constructive, but please, leave the politics out. --Rbergero 14:22, 12 May 2010 (UTC))

As much as I disagree with the law in question, several other conditions make it unreasonable for us to pick our location based on a state regulation with which we disagree:

1. Given the past exemplary behavior of FUDCon attendees, it's unlikely anyone would be involved in an illegal activity that would attract law enforcement attention. (Doing so in just about any state, as it turns out, is sufficient grounds to enforce immigration laws.)

2. It's highly unlikely we can find any location where state politics don't upset someone.

3. Even ignoring those factors, the number of international visitors to FUDCon is likely to be somewhat low since we have global FUDCon events.

4. The bid process for FUDCon is a process that was open to the entire community, and two volunteers in the Tempe area stepped forward to do the necessary planning and logistics work to make FUDCon happen. In the absence of any other bids, I think it would be wrong for the Fedora community to turn our back on their work for reasons beyond their control.

--pfrields 16:56, 12 May 2010 (UTC)