Opportunity at The Women's Building

(Find detailed information below this letter)

November 11, 2002

Dear Community,

The Women's Building is delighted to announce the opportunity for organizations and small businesses to submit a Letter Of Interest for TWB's beautiful space, located in the ground floor of TWB. This space is an incredible chance for your organization or business to become an integral part of The Women's Building, as well as the local community.

The Women's Building is a historical landmark whose vision is to provide women and girls with the tools and resources they need to achieve full and equal participation in society. Currently, TWB is welcoming LOI's from organizations or small businesses who are devoted to a mission simular to our own, and who can envision and sustain a program that is beneficial to the community and unique to The Women's Building.

In order to truly understand the value of this prospect TWB is giving a tour of our fantastic space on December 3rd. This tour will be the chance to pose any questions regarding the space, as well as determine whether this is a space that your business or organization can properly utilize. The Deadline for all Letters Of Interest is February 1st 2003. If you should have any questions or concerns please contact:
Space Selection Committee
The Women's Building
3543 18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 431-1180 ext#17
space [at] womensbuilding.org

The Women's Building is hopeful that this opportunity will create new working relationships that have the ability to inspire and initiate progress.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Teresa Mejía
Executive Director

REQUEST FOR LETTERS OF INTEREST
for the build-out and operation of a non-profit program or small business at The Women's Building

The Board of Directors of The Women's Building requests letters of interest for the build-out and ongoing operation of a non-profit program or small business that will support our mission to increase the capacity of women and girls to become active residents in our community. The space is located at 3543 18th Street on the northeast corner of the bottom floor of The Women's Building.

General Information
The Women's Building (TWB) is a multi-cultural, multi-service center for women and girls. Our mission is to provide women and girls with the tools and resources they need to achieve full and equal participation in society. Recently, TWB undertook a seismic retrofit and renovation project to provide the community with wider access to the facilities. The first two floors house an auditorium, two small rooms, as well as public services, including the information and referral center, drop-in childcare, and an early childhood education program. Permanent office spaces for non-profit organizations are located on the third and fourth floors. TWB will lease the ground floor space to an experienced individual or organization capable of operating a non-profit program or socially responsible business that benefits the community.

Proposed Program or Business Space
The available 500 square feet space is located on the ground floor of TWB, adjacent to the front desk. The space was initially built for a community café serving both TWB visitors as well as neighbors and passing pedestrian traffic. TWB envisions the space to be an extension of the safe haven it strives to provide for all visitors to TWB. TWB seeks to negotiate a multi-year lease to operate the proposed program or business. TWB is currently open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. TWB is closed on weekends except for special events. It is expected that the new program or business will operate during TWB's hours of operation.

Available Space: Background Information
Space location: The proposed space is located on the ground floor of The Women's Building, a San Francisco landmark at the corner of 18th Street and Lapidge Street. This space opens directly to the street through a corner entrance amidst the walls of the Maestrapiece Mural. There is an additional entrance to the space in TWB's lobby, making the space visible to both street traffic and users of TWB facilities.

Space: The space is 500 square feet, with additional square footage included as 2 single person finished bathrooms. The space will be delivered as an unfinished shell with the expectation that the operator
will design and build-out the room to best fit its needs. The space will be delivered with ample electricity, plumbing, a kitchen sink installed and telephone wired. TWB has additional accessible bathrooms in the ground floor lobby.

Pedestrian Traffic: In addition to The Women's Building users, the site is located in a dense residential neighborhood. Many people pass by our site walking toward Valencia Street. The16th Street BART Station and Dolores Park are both within walking distance.

Neighborhood Context: The Women's Building is located in the Mission neighborhood in a mixed use residential and commercial district, at the nexus of Castro and Noe Valley neighborhoods. We are one block from Valencia Street, site of a commercial and gourmet area and we are surrounded by businesses, including Bi-Rite Foods, Tartine Bakery, Danish Cookies, Delfina, Luna Park and several other neighborhood restaurants. The site is on a bus route and four blocks from BART.

Building Users: Our facility is visited by approximately 2,000 users every week. Everyone using TWB must pass through the lobby - the lobby also contains a direct entrance to the available space. The Women's
Building houses ten non-profit organizations that operate weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In addition, TWB has 4 meeting rooms, which are used during weekdays, evenings and weekends for conferences, meetings, private parties, classes and fundraising events. The capacity of these rooms range from 30 to 350 seats.

Site Visit
All those interested in submitting a Letter of Interest are encouraged to attend the site visit and tour of TWB. Site visit attendees will have the opportunity to tour the entire building and get an up-close look at the available space. The site visit will be held on Tuesday,
December 3, 2002 at 10:30 a.m. Please RSVP by November 27, 2002 to (415) 431-1180, ext. 17.

Letter of Interest
Please submit a brief letter of interest (2-4 pages), including all applicable sections below. All information submitted will be kept confidential.

Please note:
Program is defined as a project operated by a non-profit organization.
Business is defined as a project operated by a for-profit entity.

Cover Sheet: Respondent/Organization Name, Program or Business Name, Brief Project Description, How you heard about this Request for Letters of Interest, Contact information

Program or Business Concept (1 page maximum) - please indicate if the space would be used for a new/start-up program or business, or for re-location and/or expansion of a current operation. Demonstrate how the program or business concept will support or complement the mission of TWB.

Non-profit Organization
i. Mission and programs
ii. Past/current collaborative partners
iii. Related experience (especially in Mission District)
iv. Target population
v. Leadership and program staff experience
vi. Current operating budget and program budget

Small Business
i. Describe term of ownership, and current or past business
ownership of proposed owners
ii. Describe management, and current or past management experience
of proposed manager(s)
iii. Describe experience of owner/manager in business start-ups,
including experience in build-out of space
iv. Target clientele

Estimate of start-up costs, including design and build-out of tenant improvements, equipment, furniture, and inventory. Include draft budget of start-up costs, Describe source(s) of funding/financing Comparative evaluation criteria The overall desirability and compatibility of the concept with the mission, programs and community of TWB.
- For Non-profit Organizations, programs that support and complement the mission of TWB.
- For Small Businesses, commitment to women- and minority-owned and operated businesses.
- Proven track record for planning, implementation and sustaining long-term program(s).
- The experience of the respondent, including start-up and management experience.
- The financial sustainability of the respondent, as well as the ability to build-out space as needed.

Selection Process
All letters of interest will be screened by the Space Selection Committee of TWB Board of Directors and staff. Respondents demonstrating the strongest match with the evaluation criteria will be invited to submit a full proposal, including a full strategic or business plan. A consultant and the Space Selection Committee will review proposals. After careful analysis of the strategic or business plan, candidates will be interviewed, with lease negotiations to be carried out with the most promising candidate. It is expected that the negotiation period will be concluded by September 2003.

Letter of Interest Due Date
Seven hard copies of the letter should be received via U.S. Mail by The Women's Building by February 1, 2003, at the address below. Questions should be directed to:

Space Selection Committee
The Women's Building
3543 18th Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
Phone: (415) 4311180, ext. 17
space [at] womensbuilding.org