[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Franklin as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 7-22-2003 by Ord. No. 0-13-2003; amended 10-28-2003 by Ord. No. O-16-2003; 12-27-2022 by Ord. No. O-25-22]
A. 
It is the desire of the Township of Franklin, that the Community Center be available to the citizens of the Township of Franklin for meetings, gatherings, et cetera. The following policies are intended to be a fair criterion and guideline for those persons and/or groups using or requesting to use the facility.
B. 
There are three main areas of the Community Center available for meetings and events:
(1) 
Meeting room - large table with a maximum of eight people. This room is equipped with a television/dvd & vcr combination along with a telephone available for local calls only.
(2) 
Conference center - accommodates table seating for 120 or theater seating for 250. It can be divided into three separate conference/meeting rooms, allowing this area to be utilized simultaneously by up to three separate groups of approximately 25. It features a back building entrance, a podium and microphone. One wall-mounted television per room along with a dvd/vcr combination player. There are two contiguous unisex bathrooms. There is also an adjacent commercial kitchen which can be utilized for food storage and light food preparation. The kitchen also has a wall-mounted telephone available for local calls only.
A. 
Usage of the facility by all groups must be made via written/electronic application through the Community Center Director, during regular business hours (Monday through Friday; 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.). The library staff cannot accept applications. For regularly scheduled meetings (i.e. weekly, bi-weekly, monthly etc) requests must be made at least one month in advance prior to the first desired meeting in order to assess long-term availability and the groups priority of use. Each long-term use agreement must be reviewed on a yearly basis by the Director.
(1) 
For other events, requests must be made at least one week in advance (unless extenuating circumstances exist) in order to complete the necessary paperwork and application. This also allows time for application to be reviewed and approved. Completed applications can be delivered to the Township Administration Building Monday through Friday; 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; faxed to 856-694-1653 or emailed to jmetzger@franklintownship.com; ryusko@franklintownship.com and administrator@franklintownship.com. Please ensure that the subject line of the email states "Community Center Rental Application."
B. 
All groups must have an identified primary contact person who is responsible for completion of said application and ensure that all rules and regulations are followed, understood and agreed to by utilizing members of that group. A secondary contact for group will be appreciated in case of emergency.
C. 
Any fees and/or deposits must be paid in full and in advance at least 48 hours prior to event date.
D. 
Access will be arranged once application is received and approved.
E. 
Cancellations must be made at least 48 hours prior to scheduled event. Cancellations later than 48 hours are subject to loss of half paid rental fee.
F. 
Any changes in the scheduled meeting date or time and/or requests for additional meetings must be made in writing through the Community Center Director during regular business hours. The library staff cannot take such requests. Requests/changes will be considered based on availability.
G. 
The Township reserves the right to close the building for any reason. In the case of inclement weather, scheduled meetings will be cancelled at the Township discretion. For information on cancellations, call the Community Center at 856-694-0221 to hear a recorded message.
A. 
Due to the high demand for meeting space, the following criteria have been established to determine which group or organization's meeting needs will be prioritized only in the case of a scheduled conflict. The Director will make every effort to accommodate all schedules. In the case of a scheduling conflict, the group affected will be contacted in as timely a manner as possible.
B. 
The Community Center cannot be utilized for any kind of, political meetings, rallies or fundraising events for political organizations, advocacy groups, political candidates or groups affiliated with any political candidate, party or ballot referendum.
C. 
The following groups and organizations are ranked by their established usage priority:
(1) 
Program and nonprofit groups sponsored by the Township of Franklin.
(2) 
Programs and nonprofit groups co-sponsored by the Township of Franklin.
(3) 
Programs and events for Township of Franklin senior citizens.
(4) 
Programs sponsored by the local or regional school districts.
(5) 
Programs and events held by other units of government, either local, state or federal level.
(6) 
Nonprofit social service groups or organizations that serve citizens with special needs.
(7) 
Groups or organizations serving the youth of Franklin Township.
(8) 
Civic or service organizations which serve Franklin Township adults.
(9) 
Clubs or social groups with 100% Franklin Township memberships.
(10) 
Clubs or social groups with 80-99% Franklin Township memberships.
(11) 
Franklin Township business users.
(12) 
Non-Franklin Township groups, clubs organizations or programs.
(13) 
Non-Franklin Township business users.
D. 
The Community Center Director must receive a membership roster with complete addresses in order to confirm Township residency percentages.
A. 
The Community Center is available for free to priority groups § 188-3C(1) through (10), as long as a security deposit is secured with the Community Center Director and the facility is utilized during the normal operating hours of Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Groups which utilize the Community Center on a weekly or monthly basis will be required to pay either a $50 or $100 cleaning fee based on amount of usage in hours per month and number of participants, on a monthly basis beginning 10/1/2022.
B. 
Any group utilizing the Community Center facility outside of the normal business hours of Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. will be required to pay a staffing fee not to exceed $25 per hour with a minimum two-hour fee. Any reservation for use outside of normal business hours is based on staff availability.
C. 
Any groups listed above in § 188-3C(9) or (10) will be required to present a membership roster with complete addresses for verification of Township resident percentages.
D. 
Anyone renting the facility understands that in addition to the security deposit should more than a normal cleaning be needed due to something that happened during their rental time, they will be responsible for the full cost of cleaning and any related costs and/or fees incurred by the Township as a result of the additional necessary cleaning.
(1) 
Meeting room: $100 per day (maximum six hours) or $20 per hour (minimum two hours).
(2) 
Conference room(s) 1, 2 and 3: $400 per day (maximum six hours) or $75 per hour (minimum two hours).
(3) 
Conference rooms 1, 2 and 3 with kitchen: $650 per day (maximum six hours) or $125 per hour (minimum two hours). Kitchen can only be utilized by an outside catering facility who provides insurance coverage for day of event covering use of kitchen and any equipment in kitchen including but not limited to range, oven, steam table and dishwasher.
(4) 
Conference rooms 1 and 2 or 2 and 3: $300 per day (maximum six hours) or $60 per hour (minimum two hours).
(5) 
Conference rooms 1 and 2 or 2 and 3 with kitchen: $500 per day (maximum six hours) or $125 per hour (minimum two hours). Kitchen can only be utilized by an outside catering facility who provides insurance coverage for day of event covering use of kitchen and any equipment in kitchen including but not limited to range, oven, steam table and dishwasher.
(6) 
Conference room 1, 2 or 3 (only one room) with kitchen: $325 per day (maximum six hours) or $75 per hour (minimum two hours). Kitchen can only be utilized by an outside catering facility who provides insurance coverage for day of event covering use of kitchen and any equipment in kitchen including but not limited to range, oven, steam table and dishwasher.
** It should be noted that requested rental time needs to include one hour for setup and breakdown/cleaning - This time spent is not "free" and will be included into the rental time requested**
A. 
It is the contact person's responsibility to secure the building as instructed by the Community Center Director. The building should never be left unattended and unlocked. If the user groups scheduled event should end earlier than expected and before the Community Center representative has arrived to secure the premises, the contact person must remain on premises until the building has been inspected by the Community Center representative for adherence to rules, regulations and cleaning obligations.
B. 
Groups using the facility are responsible for returning the room to the same condition as it was found. All trash shall be placed into the trashcans provided. Renters should use care not to dispose of liquids into the trashcans or bag liners as they can create spills. Tables and chairs should be returned to the original position as directed by the community center representative. All equipment and lights must be turned off. There will be a check off sheet which will be completed by the Community Center representative and the renter at check in and another form at check out. Both will be signed by both parties and any and all issues should be noted in writing.
C. 
Use of audio/visual equipment must be requested in advance and the user group will be held responsible for any loss or damage.
D. 
Internet is available to Township residents at the station in the lobby and to Township Senior citizens at the station in the senior lounge during regular business hours - Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Internet is available to evening or weekend renters by previous arrangement only. Only Township of Franklin designated personnel or Community Center representatives are permitted to change the settings of internet and to install/uninstall programs.
E. 
Heating and/or air conditioning controls are preset and should not be adjusted or tampered with at any time.
F. 
The partition doors in the conference center are removable and set up as needed. They are not to be moved or adjusted by anyone other than Township of Franklin designated personnel. Requests for positioning of doors must be made and confirmed prior to date of event.
G. 
Food and beverages are permitted in the meeting and conference center rooms, however, the user group is responsible for full clean up (tables wiped, trash disposed of, etc). Use of the kitchen is only allowed as described above in fee schedule. In addition catering staff and user group contact person must review and sign the kitchen safety rules sheet prior to event date. The kitchen must be completely cleaned up after use, all pots, pans, utensils and equipment must be washed clean, dried and put away.
H. 
Centerpieces and table coverings are allowed on tables, but must all be removed and disposed of at events end. Decorations must be UL approved (flame retardant). The use of nails, tacks, scotch/duct tape or staples are not permitted. Only painters/masking tape can be used and must be removed immediately after use. Decorations and/or any type of wire or cord may not be hung or draped on any light fixture inside/outside the Community Center. No candles are allowed.
I. 
Rice, birdseed, confetti, hay, straw, sand, glitter, and other similar items etc. are not permitted.
J. 
Parking is permitted in the parking lot only. No parking is permitted on any of the grass areas for any reason at any time. All bicycles shall be secured or mounted to the bicycle rack. Bicycling, skateboarding or roller blading are permitted on the walking track only.
K. 
No alcoholic beverages are permitted on the premises at any time.
L. 
No Illegal substances or activities are permitted in the building or on the building grounds.
M. 
The Community Center is a smoke free facility, therefore no smoking of any kind (cigarette, pipe, cigars, e-cigarette, vape pen etc) is permitted. Nor is the use of any type of tobacco products, including but not limited to smokeless types. No smoke/fog machines are allowed. All renters and their guests are required to follow safety rules for public buildings. Occupants will be evacuated during a fire alarm. Renter will forfeit entire deposit and be responsible for any additional costs due to emergency response, if alarm was the result of rental party or any group hired by the renter.
N. 
No storage of any equipment or property is permitted in the Community Center.
O. 
No animals are permitted on the premises, with the exception of service animals who are in the presence of their owner/assigned person.
P. 
The contact person for all user groups must be 18 years of age or older. An adult supervisor must be present at all times for minors who are on the premises.
Q. 
Occupancy limits for the meeting rooms will be enforced. Emergency exits must remain clear at all times. Groups are expected to cooperate with Community Center representatives in effort to maintain safety and security of building and all connected grounds for the safety, health and welfare of all visitors.
R. 
The community center is under surveillance at all times. Any damage to the facility, equipment, furniture, fixtures or building structure must be reported to the community center representatives immediately. Any costs for additional cleanup, repairs or replacement will be billed directly to the user group responsible party. If the user group observes previous damage upon arrival to use facility or encounters some type of building problem during use time, it is the user groups responsibility to immediately notify the community center representative.
S. 
The Community Center Director may require police supervision at any event, the actual cost of which will be estimated to the user group responsible party and will be payable by the user group prior to event commencement date.
T. 
Failure to abide by these rules will result in the permanent loss of the use of the facility. Illegal activities, malicious or intentional damage will be turned over to the Police Department for investigation and prosecution.
Editor's Note: The application and checklist are on file in Township offices.