For four years, I ran something similar to this: an artist residency, in rural Appalachia. I charged a low fee to folks who came, and kept the experience fairly simple and self-catered.
However, it really wasn't sustainable. People who came invariably expected more — whether more infrastructure or more community or more subsidies/scholarships or more politics — and genuinely 'simple' folks were very rare.
The fees I charged barely covered utility/transportation costs, and were never enough to cover property taxes, much less paying me even a minimal salary. I could have raised fees, but that would have raised expectations and assumptions, too.
Furthermore, all my attempts to obtain professional help were a complete failure — whether getting a CPA/bookeeper (to manage the taxes I was required by the state to collect), an attorney (for making it a legal nonprofit to avoid those taxes), or an insurance broker (for liability insurance because people will sue you). Providers around here looked at my project and just said, 'Meh, I don't understand it. I'm not interested,' or quoted fuck-you prices, like $10K/year for liability! Providers closer to the city might have helped, but for even higher fees.
Sure, I could have — and did — do without all those things. But one realizes, the further one is off that branch, the more unstable things become.
Our society is built for either individual/family scale, or corporate scale. It's very, very difficult to find a place in between that will work for more than a short time. Try to run a project in the US that is not a business but not just an individual hobby: you'll find few options, outside of established structures like churches. And even those have much bigger budgets and organizations than you might think.
However, it really wasn't sustainable. People who came invariably expected more — whether more infrastructure or more community or more subsidies/scholarships or more politics — and genuinely 'simple' folks were very rare.
The fees I charged barely covered utility/transportation costs, and were never enough to cover property taxes, much less paying me even a minimal salary. I could have raised fees, but that would have raised expectations and assumptions, too.
Furthermore, all my attempts to obtain professional help were a complete failure — whether getting a CPA/bookeeper (to manage the taxes I was required by the state to collect), an attorney (for making it a legal nonprofit to avoid those taxes), or an insurance broker (for liability insurance because people will sue you). Providers around here looked at my project and just said, 'Meh, I don't understand it. I'm not interested,' or quoted fuck-you prices, like $10K/year for liability! Providers closer to the city might have helped, but for even higher fees.
Sure, I could have — and did — do without all those things. But one realizes, the further one is off that branch, the more unstable things become.
Our society is built for either individual/family scale, or corporate scale. It's very, very difficult to find a place in between that will work for more than a short time. Try to run a project in the US that is not a business but not just an individual hobby: you'll find few options, outside of established structures like churches. And even those have much bigger budgets and organizations than you might think.
Nuthin's easy, son.