Shaboo_RFP_8_25_2026.pdf

TOWN OF WINDHAM, CONNECTICUT

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

MANAGEMENT AND OPERATION OF THE SHABOO STAGE, JILLSON SQUARE, AND JILLSON

EVENT SPACE

I. PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW

The Town of Windham is seeking proposals from qualified organizations or firms interested in managing and operating the Shaboo Stage, Jillson Square, and the Jillson Event Space in Willimantic, Connecticut.

The Town’s objective is to establish a professional venue-management arrangement that increases the use and visibility of these public facilities, expands cultural, entertainment, recreational, and community programming, improves coordination of events and rentals, develops sponsorship and other revenue opportunities, and reduces the administrative burden presently associated with direct municipal management of the facilities.

The Town intends to retain ownership of the facilities and ultimate responsibility for public policy, major capital decisions, and the public purposes for which the facilities are maintained. The selected operator would assume substantial responsibility for the day-to-day management, programming, scheduling, marketing, and operation of the facilities.

The Town is interested in proposals that recognize the Shaboo Stage and Jillson Square as important public and community assets while also applying professional event-management practices and developing opportunities to increase activity, attendance, earned revenue, sponsorships, and economic activity in downtown Willimantic.

II. FACILITIES

The facilities covered by this RFP include the Shaboo Stage, Jillson Square, and the associated Jillson Event Space and related areas customarily used in connection with events conducted at these facilities.

The Shaboo Stage is an outdoor performance venue located within Jillson Square in downtown Willimantic. The facilities are used for concerts, festivals, cultural events, municipal celebrations, community activities, private rentals, and other public gatherings.

The Town anticipates that the selected operator will manage the facilities as an integrated event venue while recognizing that different portions of the property may be appropriate for different types and sizes of events.

III. MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE

The Town intends to use a venue-management model under which the selected operator assumes primary responsibility for routine operation and programming while the Town retains ownership and policy oversight.

The Town will retain authority over the overall public purposes of the facilities, approval of the annual operating plan, approval of the general fee structure, major capital improvements, and other policy matters identified in the final agreement. The Town will also retain the right to review financial and operating records relating to the facilities and to conduct audits as appropriate.

The selected operator will be expected to exercise independent professional judgment in the management and programming of the facilities within the framework established by the Town and the final management agreement.

The parties will work cooperatively to establish an operating relationship that gives the operator sufficient flexibility to successfully manage and market the venue while protecting the Town’s ownership interests and ensuring that the facilities remain available for appropriate public and community uses.

IV. SCOPE OF SERVICES

The selected operator will be responsible for the day-to-day management and operation of the facilities. Responsibilities are expected to include scheduling and calendar management;

solicitation and administration of facility rentals; development and promotion of concerts, festivals, performances, and other events; coordination with performers, promoters, renters, vendors, sponsors, and community organizations; and administration of routine event logistics.

The operator will be expected to develop a balanced program of activities that may include commercial entertainment, community programming, cultural events, nonprofit activities, municipal events, private rentals, and other appropriate uses.

The operator will be responsible for marketing and promotion of the facilities and their events. This may include website and social-media promotion, advertising, public relations, outreach to performers and promoters, relationships with regional tourism and economic-development organizations, and other reasonable efforts to establish the Shaboo Stage and Jillson Square as active regional destinations.

The operator will also be expected to identify and develop sponsorship opportunities, naming or presenting sponsorships where approved by the Town, event partnerships, vendor opportunities, concessions, and other sources of earned or contributed revenue.

The operator will coordinate event-related vendors and service providers and will be responsible for ensuring that events are appropriately planned and that applicable permits, licenses, insurance requirements, health and safety requirements, and other legal or regulatory obligations are satisfied.

The operator will coordinate with Town departments and public-safety agencies when municipal services are necessary for an event. The final agreement will establish procedures for requesting such services and allocating any associated costs.

The operator will maintain appropriate financial and operating records and provide periodic reports to the Town regarding programming, attendance, rentals, revenues, expenditures, sponsorships, facility usage, and other measures agreed upon by the parties.

The operator will also identify operational and capital needs affecting the facilities and provide recommendations to the Town concerning maintenance, equipment, infrastructure, and future improvements.

V. TOWN OVERSIGHT AND COMMUNITY USE

The Town will retain ownership of the facilities and authority over major capital expenditures and improvements. Nothing in the management agreement will transfer ownership of the Shaboo Stage, Jillson Square, or associated municipal property to the operator.

The Town will review and approve an annual operating plan submitted by the operator. The plan will identify anticipated programming, major events, rental activities, marketing initiatives, sponsorship activities, operating priorities, and other significant elements of the proposed annual program.

The Town will also approve the general schedule of facility rental fees and charges. The operator may recommend adjustments based on market conditions, event type, community benefit, or other reasonable factors.

The Town will retain reasonable access to financial and operating records associated with management of the facilities and may audit those records.

The facilities will remain available for municipal purposes. The Town may reserve the facilities for up to nine Town-sponsored community events in total each year during the months of May through September without payment of a facility rental fee. The Town and operator will coordinate these dates sufficiently in advance to minimize conflicts with other scheduled programming.

Town-sponsored events will remain subject to reasonable operational planning and coordination requirements. Costs for extraordinary services, equipment, performers, security, public safety, or other direct event expenses may be allocated separately as provided in the final agreement.

The operator will be expected to work cooperatively with Town officials, Town departments, community organizations, downtown businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other stakeholders to maximize the public and economic value of the facilities.

VI. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Proposals should describe the proposer’s organization, qualifications, management structure, and experience. Particular attention should be given to experience managing concert venues, outdoor performance spaces, festivals, municipal or nonprofit facilities, cultural venues, entertainment properties, or other facilities comparable in character or complexity to the Shaboo Stage and Jillson Square. Proposers should identify key personnel who would be assigned to the project and provide at least three references for comparable work.

Each proposal should include a First-Year Operating Plan describing how the proposer would assume responsibility for the facilities and manage the first year of operations. The plan should address scheduling, rentals, staffing, event production, coordination with Town departments, customer service, vendor management, financial controls, facility oversight, and other major operational responsibilities. Proposers are encouraged to identify specific steps they would take during the transition period and the first several months of operation.

The proposal should include a programming and community-engagement strategy. Proposers should describe the types and approximate number of events they believe could reasonably be developed or attracted to the facilities, the approach they would use to balance commercial programming and community access, and the manner in which they would work with local organizations, performers, businesses, cultural groups, and residents. The Town is particularly interested in approaches that increase appropriate use of the facilities while preserving their role as community assets.

The proposal should describe the proposer’s marketing and sponsorship strategy. This discussion should explain how the proposer would market the Shaboo Stage, Jillson Square, and individual events; develop relationships with performers, promoters, renters, and regional audiences; obtain sponsorships and partnerships; and strengthen the identity of the facilities as destinations within downtown Willimantic and the surrounding region.

Each proposer should provide a detailed financial proposal. The Town is open to reasonable management structures and does not require proposers to use a single compensation model.

Proposals may include a fixed management fee, revenue-sharing arrangement, performance incentives, a hybrid structure, or another approach that the proposer believes creates an appropriate allocation of financial responsibility and incentives. The proposal should clearly explain how revenues from rentals, ticketing, sponsorships, concessions, vendors, and other activities would be handled and how operating expenses would be allocated between the operator and the Town. Proposers should provide a proposed first-year operating budget and identify any assumptions upon which that budget is based.

The financial proposal should also identify any equipment, facility, or capital improvements that the proposer believes would materially improve operations or revenue potential. Identification of such improvements will not obligate the Town to fund them but will assist the Town in evaluating the proposer’s understanding of the facilities and the long-term operating opportunity.

Proposers should clearly identify any exceptions they request to the structure described in this RFP and any significant contractual terms they believe should be incorporated into a final agreement.

The Town encourages proposals that offer creative approaches, provided that the proposed structure protects the Town’s ownership interest, maintains meaningful public access, and establishes a financially sustainable operating model.

VII. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

The Town will evaluate proposals based on the overall qualifications and experience of the proposer; the quality, practicality, and completeness of the proposed operating plan; the strength of the proposer’s programming and community-engagement strategy; the quality of the marketing and sponsorship approach; and the reasonableness, sustainability, transparency, and overall value of the proposed financial arrangement.

The Town will also consider the proposer’s references, organizational and financial capacity, demonstrated ability to operate comparable facilities, responsiveness to the requirements of this RFP, and ability to work effectively within the public-purpose framework established by the Town.

Selection will not necessarily be based on the proposal offering the lowest management cost or the greatest projected payment to the Town. The Town intends to select the proposal that, in its judgment, provides the best overall value and the strongest opportunity to increase the use, quality, visibility, financial sustainability, and community benefit of the facilities.

The Town may interview one or more proposers, request clarification or additional information, negotiate with one or more proposers, request best and final offers, or take other reasonable steps necessary to evaluate proposals and develop a final agreement. The Town reserves the right to reject any or all proposals if it determines that doing so is in the Town’s best interest.

VIII. AGREEMENT

The successful proposer will be required to enter into a written management agreement with the Town of Windham. The agreement will establish the respective responsibilities of the Town and operator, financial arrangements, reporting requirements, insurance and indemnification requirements, performance expectations, termination provisions, and other terms necessary to protect the interests of the Town and establish a workable management relationship.

The final agreement will also establish procedures for annual operating-plan approval, facility fees, municipal use of the facilities, capital improvements, financial reporting and auditing, coordination with municipal departments, and allocation of event-related costs.

IX. RFP SUBMISSION DEADLINE

All proposals must be submitted to the Town Manager's Office at 979 Main Street, Willimantic, CT 06226, by 2:00 PM on Thursday, September 24, 2026. The outside of the envelope must be clearly labeled: "MANAGEMENT AND OPERATION OF THE SHABOO STAGE RFP – Town of Windham."

X. QUESTIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS

Questions concerning this RFP should be directed to:

Xiomara Capo Town Manager’s Office Town of Windham 979 Main Street Willimantic, CT 06226

(860) 465-3001 xcapo@windhamct.gov mailto:xcapo@windhamct.gov