DescentBB

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what is this legal snag, if you don't mind me asking.

Zoning. We need to get a special permit written.

Write something up about how it gives kids a place to go after school that could be latchkey.

question.

where the hell is Richardson Tx at? cause i cant find it on the map

1. Gives kids something to do after school. "Shadowlan: The Anti-Drug"

2. Another source of entertainment for Richardson, TX. Everybody loves it when a movie theater's put in. Why? Another form of entertainment in the town.

3. Tourism: Far reaching, I know, but if you are going to host pretty big LANs this could bring a hundred people into the (town? city?), which is good for hotels, fast food, etc.

4. I'm trying to figure out something else about "uniting kids in the community" or something bla bla.

BTW, place looks pretty f'n cool too.

You could also take the angle that gaming is good for kids. Studies have shown that it hones eye-hand coordination and increases the brains ability to quickly process large amounts of data and make quick decisions based on that data.

Just tell them you know where they live and rejection could result in gratuitous gibs. Bring a rocket launcher or rail gun for emphasis.

Just tell them to f*ck off and give you a permit.

TBâ?¦ Iâ??m going to ask some stupid questions.
Did you apply with the city for a building permit for all this remodeling you did? Your going to have to get your place of business inspected before they will issue a Certificate of Occupancy.
Just some of the questions that I through of when I looked at your pictures.
Is that UV lighting going to meet code? Do you have an alternative lighting source if it doesnâ??t?
Emergency lighting, do you need it?
Emergency exits marked and lighted?
That new bathroom you built, does it meet ADA (The Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements?
Sign permits?

Iâ??m not trying to be a smart-ass, Iâ??ve been a building contractor for the last 15 years and I know the kind of red tape you can run into when you open a new business. If you applied for a building permit they should have picked up on the zoning thing right away and had you apply for a variance before you started any construction, that way you donâ??t put a lot of money into a building your not going to be able to use.

As far as the Zoning hearing goes you might want to take an engineered drawing of the floor plan with you, your going to need this for the building permit anyway. That way they can see what you have planned and that youâ??ve put some thought into this. The Zoning Board is going to be thinking â??how are you going to be making this neighborhood a better placeâ?

Another point you might want to address is the nature of the facility, and how it differs from a "Video Arcade"

Specifically, you will want to draw parallels to a cyber-cafe with gaming, and move away from the image of a video arcade with computers.

We all know what a LAN is like, and a LAN-in-place would be very similar. It doesn't promote the kind of negative factors that video arcades do, mostly because the thugs who cause problems usually don't have the experience with the equipment or the intelligence to be interested.

You may want to put together a new business plan as well, specifically slanted toward this zoning hearing.

My suggestion would be that the business plan be heavily slanted toward the cyber-cafe/computer center model. Harp heavily on the services you will provide that are also provided by those types of businesses, and de-emphasize the gaming aspect. Additionally, I would seriously think about organizing some sort of educational agenda as well, with beginner through intermediate classes in various fields, because politicians know that it is very unpopular to be "against education". Not to mention that the educational side can become very lucrative in it's own right and it's not hard to bang together a basic core computer curriculum. Just make sure that you offer some kind of free service to the community (basic computer classes), which can also be used as a sales tool for your higher level classes.

Well, it's good to see that we're thinking along parallel lines, Advocate because many of the things you mentioned, we're already doing.

What I need now are some voices from the gaming community to add a little something extra for our presentation to the planning commission.

BTW- we're doing almost exactly what you've suggested in your second reply.

pitch my vote in emailing it later tonight

ill include my thought on the LAN center and it intended purpose of bringing many different kinds of both Young and Elder gamers from around the country and possibly the world

Alright, how do we give you our voices?