I know you're located in Center
City Philadelphia, so where do my guests park?
The Society has a fenced-in parking lot that
holds roughly 35-40 cars. Outside of business hours, there
is usually plenty of street parking along Spring Garden (barring
any other major activities happening in the area at the same time).
Some of the street parking has a two hour limit or is
metered, and those restrictions are enforced by the Parking Authority.
How many hours can we rent your
rooms? Will you charge us extra if we go over a certain
number of hours?
The German Society rents by the room, not by the hour.
Therefore, it is the same charge whether you rent the room for
one hour or twelve. Provided a volunteer is available to
monitor the building, it is generally acceptable for you to drop
off items the day before, or come in to decorate a few hours
prior to your event (provided it is agreed upon in advance).
However, once hours have been
stipulated in the contract, we will hold you to that time slot.
At the latest, parties must be over by midnight, and clean-up
must be complete by 1:00am.
Can we bring in our own items and
decorate your rooms?
Absoluely. In fact, the way you set up the room gives us
ideas
for how we can decorate for our own events! As long as none of
your decorations are damaging, i.e. no nails, tacks or tape, you can
use lights, potted plants, flowers, banners, garland,
etc. We permit the use of candles in every room. Tape
of any kind is strictly prohibited.
Can we smoke inside the German Society?
We are a smoke-free facility - that includes foyers, doorways
and stairways leading into the building. You can smoke outside,
but we kindly ask that you dispose of cigarette butts properly
(preferably NOT on the steps or ground outside of our building.)
The bathrooms are also smoke-free zones.
Can we bring in live music or a DJ?
Certainly. We can even give you suggestions as to where to
put your music in order to maximize the acoustics in each of our rooms.
Do you have tables and chairs we can
use?
The Society has rectangular folding tables (8ft in
length, seats 10) and
accompanying folding chairs that can be put in any arrangement you
choose. If you would like round or high-top tables, you will
have to rent those from your caterer or a party supplier. Any
items you rent MUST have rubber caps on the feet so as not to scratch
the floor.
What if we need to rent tables,
chairs, etc.?
Any drop-offs and pick-ups
must be scheduled between the hours of 9:30am-4:00pm, Monday-Friday.
We will be happy to receive your rented items and hand them back
over to the rental company again, but we would strongly prefer that
someone from your party be present. (You are the one who knows
best what you ordered and what you are obligated to return.) We
need to be informed in advance when your deliveries are scheduled.
There is no additional charge for us to receive and return the
rented items on your behalf, but we will only accept pre-paid
deliveries, and we will not take responsibility
for missing items upon delivery or pick-up. We will
also refuse any tables or chairs that do not have protective rubber
caps on the feet.
Do you have a bar area?
Both the Ratskeller and Auditorium have bars with refrigeration
units.
These can be used to serve both alcoholic and non-alcoholic
beverages. We do not have a beer tap or an ice machine. You
are welcome to bring a keg, but we ask that you also bring a big
plastic tub for it to sit in to protect our floors, and you will need
to rent the tap itself.
Are you handicap accessible?
There are five or six
steps to get into the building and the restrooms are located in
the Ratskeller (basement). However, we also
have an elevator, which will allow
physically-challenged guests to access all levels of our building,
including the Library, Auditorium and balcony, street level, and
Ratskeller. You will need to let us know in advance if you expect
to use it.
Do you
have outdoor space we can use?
Yes. We have a small fenced-in courtyard on the
Spring Garden side of our building. Depending on your usage of
it, we may charge you a small fee to cover the landscaping costs to
prepare it properly for your event.
Does the German Society have a list of caterers we are required to
use?
While
the GSP can certainly recommend a few caterers with which we have
established relationships or who have successfully done events on our
premises
before, we do not have a select list of caterers from which you MUST
choose. You may bring in any caterer you choose, or you can even
cook
the food here in our kitchen(s) yourself.
To what extent do we have to clean up?
At the end of your event, you are required to leave the
space the
way you found it. Trash needs to be taken out and deposited in
the containers in the parking lot. If there are spills or
other messes on the tabletops, floors, or restrooms, please clean
them up. Most caterers will handle this for you.
All food must be properly sealed, refrigerated, or disposed
of at the
end of your event. Dirty dishes must (at the very least) be
rinsed. We inspect our spaces after each event, and if we need to
enlist a cleaning party, we will retain your security / cleaning
deposit as stated
below.
Are there any additional fees I should
know about?
Yes, there are two additional fees - one mandatory, one optional.
1) We charge a refundable security deposit
for each room
rented. If the terms of clean-up mentioned above are not adhered
to, the Society will take care of the
mess, and
therefore will keep your deposit to cover
the cost of doing so. If the rooms are left in proper condition,
we will fully refund your security deposit. The
release or retention thereof is solely at the German Society's
discretion.
2) You will need to provide liability insurance for the party.
The majority of caterers will provide this on your behalf, and
all of the caterers on our Recommended Caterers List will do so as
well. If your caterer does not have, or is unwilling to provide
it, the cost to purchase a policy is $75 (dry party), $150 (party with
alcohol). The fee goes directly to the insurance company, and the
policy can be purchased in about five minutes with a credit card over
the phone or on the internet. If you need this option, we will
send you detailed instructions for purchasing the policy.
Do you have room dimensions and floor
plans to help me setup my event?
The dimensions can be found on each room's respective
webpage. We do not presently have floor plans available.
If I purchase items for my event that
I'm left with once it's over, can I leave them behind as a
donation?
Yes. Some parties who have rented our space find that, at
the end of their celebration, they're left with extra
items they purchased specifically for the event that
they don't know what to do with. So, for example, if you
purchase a candle holder for each of the 20 tables at your wedding
reception and need a home for them once the event is done, we
welcome you to leave them behind as a donation. We will even
issue you a receipt for the fair market value of the items to deduct
from your taxes.
What is the general neighborhood like
around the German Society?
During the day, the area along Spring Garden Street is
well-populated and trafficked. At night, we usually recommend
people to walk to their cars in pairs or groups just to deter the
approach of any unwanted individuals. Also, the hidden nightclubs
along Spring Garden Street tend to come alive at midnight and
beyond; therefore, we urge you to take that into consideration
when planning the times for your event, especially if you have seniors
or children attending.
What if I want to come and see your
space in person?
Please do! We hardly ever rent to parties site unseen,
so call Sharan Knoell at 215-627-2332 or email info at
germansociety dot org to set up an appointment. Generally, we are
available Monday-Friday, 9:00am-4:30pm, but we will certainly make
every effort to accommodate your schedule.
German Society of
Pennsylvania
611 Spring
Garden Street
Philadelphia,
PA 19123
(P) 215-627-2332
(F) 215-627-5297
