BCP

[NewsLady]

Because of the respect I have for the entire Boquete Community, it is important for me to express my appreciation  for all the information sent by different media regarding the future of BCP location.

1. The current BCP board negotiated a sublease with TAP OUT,   authorized by me,  knowing that the term of the lease expires on June 30th.
2. To achieve  the vision that the  TAP OUT owners had of the site, it was necessary to make a considerable investment,  which should be noted. 
3. These   investors have a current lease on the adjoining property  which they have maintained   to  my satisfaction.  In   view of that and knowing that they cover 60% of the BCP rent,  for the new lease beginning July 2020 I propose that the investors assume the lease of the property where TAP OUT is located . BCP would then sublease from the investors the space they would need.    The space will always be available to BCP and the activities they sponsor.  BCP is much more than a place for a restaurant or a market, it is a meeting place for the entire Community

Boquete is our little town that we all love and care about and I will continue to contribute to making it a desirable place for residents and visitors.

With all  my respect and always open to listen and help

 

Anayansi Menéndez

BCP Member

[Uncle Doug]

There seems to be a lot of intrigue to the situation. I assume Anayansi Menéndez is the owner of the property that was shared by BCP and Tap Out. It's pretty clear that the situation is not going to be resolved the way Sra. Menéndez suggests above. I don't know what use Tap Out can make of the auditorium, but it doesn't look like BCP is going to return to that location. That seems unfortunate to me.

[BD]

In some ways it sounds like she is apologizing for something she has done in the past, but not making any changes in whatever it was that she did. What is the real story here?

[Marcelyn]

Boquete Market and the only community theater both gone. How sad.

[Uncle Doug]

BCP says it plans to reopen at another downtown location, and will announce it later.  They can't reopen under current government restrictions, but there's not another auditorium elsewhere that I'm aware of.

[Brundageba]

 Everybody in Boquete wants BCP to continue and I sense Anayansi ( owner of the property) does as well.   I have hopes that it will be worked out.  Right now COVID has shut this sort of thing down anyway which affords time to possibly negotiate a plan with the Tap Out folks. 

Edited June 2, 2020 by Brundageba

[Jim Bondoux]

I have no connection to any of the actors in this discussion. However, I'll jump in and share my views, FWIW. Your indulgence is requested.

1. TapOut is probably a more reliable and financially stable tenant than the BCP, and therefore is the better candidate as primary lessee.

2. The auditorium is a terrific resource for theatrical productions, Sunday movies, and Tuesday presentations. I'm willing to bet that attendance at the Tuesday presentations is substantially independent from the Tuesday market, i.e. most of the audience for whatever is on the program would show up for the presentation even if there were no concurrent market activity. Obviously that statement also stands for the Sunday movies and various theatrical performances. It's the subject matter that draws attendees, not the market.

3. Then the logic is to have TapOut as master lessee simply rent out the auditorium on an ad hoc basis for whatever it is used for (remember, when it reopens it will be limited to 25% capacity...). For a presentation, there is there something magic about Tuesday 10:30am?

4. The Tuesday market seems to have outgrown its infrastructure. I suggest that alternative sites might prove to have better economics. The El Cancho gymnasium comes to mind, as does the Bible Fellowship building (former Amigos, etc) as offering sheltered vendor space and roomy parking options. A wider horizon (e.g. Alto Boquete) offers additional alternatives perhaps worthy of consideration.

5. Who are the vendors who draw traffic to the Tuesday market? How can such vendors be developed or encouraged? I probably missed them, but surveys of visitors to the Tuesday market would be useful guides for future improvement strategies.

Anecdote: I know of one vendor whose traditional location was unilaterally changed and who no longer shows up, and who was probably 50% of the reason I would come on Tuesdays...

The dogs bark, but the caravan moves on....

[Uncle Doug]

12 hours ago, Jim Bondoux said:

The El Cancho gymnasium comes to mind, as does the Bible Fellowship building (former Amigos, etc) as offering sheltered vendor space and roomy parking options.

Is the El Cancho gym the one in Los Naranjos?

[Brundageba]

The virus will be active for many many more months and the interior of the location does not allow for the amount of people that frequent the market  and the monitoring and control of same.   Distancing will be an issue for months. . A restaurant on the other hand has an ability to control the amount of customers inside and out and physically mandating the spacing. .  

That said, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever for BCP to renew a a contract that can not be utilized.   Seems that to allow Tap Out to move forward with business and hold the contract until the health climate changes is currently the better option.. 

BTW, by much blood sweat and tears of volunteer effort and input of money, restored the building that BCP has utilized.   It's primary purpose was for a permanent  theater location    It was resurrected from a need of repair and moved forward. What evolved was a theater but as well a place for vendors.  I sense COVID as the impetus for Anayansi making this business decision at this point in time. ( just my personal thoughts...)

[Jim Bondoux]

Nope. It's behind the Ruiz warehouse and the Terpel station in Bajo Boquete. Animales has held large patio sales there. I only see it used for basketball games in the evenings, usually Mondays.

[Penny]

I was vice-president of BCP for several years and I will tell you that this is a Mexican Stand Off. The rent on the facility is substantial and BCP cannot cover that nut without the income from the Tap Out lease and the Tuesday market. Conversely, I doubt that Tap Out alone can cover the rent.

It's a fallacy to say that Tap Out is a more stable tenant than BCP. BCP has a substantial bank account that it has been accumulating for many years with the goal of someday owning their own facility. BCP has put tens of thousands of dollars of repairs into the facility. They have replaced the roof, installed a water system,  and rewired most of the facility. This is in addition to many structural repairs and improvements.

It would be very difficult to move the market to the feria or one of the gyms. For one thing, where would the tables be stored? Also, I highly doubt the vendors would want to move and take a chance on an unproven location. In the past BCP has not treated the vendors very well and that has caused some resentment. I believe that if Tap OUt wanted to take over and run the market, most of the vendors would stay as they don't really have any loyalty to BCP,; their loyalty is to the BCP location.

There is one other auditorium type facility in town and that is at Hotel Fundadores. Before they had their own facility, BCP did use the Fundadores for several productions. However, it is smaller than the current theater and not so well equipped with sound and lighting.

As I said, right now it's a Mexican standoff with a lot of bluffing from both sides. In the end, we should all hope for some kind of mutual agreement that keeps the BCP going.

I believe Anayansi wrote the email because she wanted to explain her position because there was a lot of negative feedback from the community. My personal opinion is that she made a huge mistake and one that she may well regret in the future.

Penny

[Uncle Doug]

21 hours ago, Penny said:

I believe Anayansi wrote the email because she wanted to explain her position because there was a lot of negative feedback from the community. My personal opinion is that she made a huge mistake and one that she may well regret in the future.

That could be.  At the moment, though, she's the only one making any money.

[Keith Woolford]

21 hours ago, Uncle Doug said:

That could be.  At the moment, though, she's the only one making any money.

She's always been the only one to make any money.

 

[Keith Woolford]

On 6/3/2020 at 9:48 AM, Uncle Doug said:

Is the El Cancho gym the one in Los Naranjos?

The name of the facility is El Cacho, short for Cachorro de Leones or Lion's Cub.