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Los Alamos-White Rock Event Planning Guide
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EVENT PLANNING GUIDE

For Los Alamos County

Resources for scheduling & hosting an event in Los Alamos & White Rock

COMMUNITY PROFILE & ASSETS

Thank you for considering Los Alamos County to host your event! We want to make your event as successful as possible. View our Community Profile, including an Assets list, which details our local lodging capacity, accommodations, transportation, restaurants and more.

IDENTIFYING YOUR EVENT DATE

First, it’s suggested that you view potential conflicts via the Los Alamos Community Events Calendar, FYILosAlamos.com and the County Seasonal Activity Guide. Also, seasonal considerations and state events that can be found at the State Tourism Events (NMTrue). Vendor availability and travel times should also be considered.    

PREPARING FOR YOUR EVENT:

SCHEDULING YOUR VENUE

Meeting & Venues list (also includes Catering Contacts).

County Facility Reservations - It is suggested that you start the appropriate permits at least several months in advance, a minimum of 30 days out from your event.

Rental Resources

Tents

Albuquerque Tents (tables, chairs, tents & more)

Contact 505-873-6190

American Tent Rentals (tables, chairs, tents & more)

Contact 505-888-5821

2401 COORS BLVD SW #4

ALBUQUERQUE, NM 87121

Santa Fe Party Rentals (tables, chairs, tents & more) - Santa Fe

Contact 505-986-1200

Other

Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce & projectY cowork (variety of equipment)

Several items are available via the Chamber of Commerce and projectY cowork space to assist with your event, including: Backdrops (green, black, white) with stand; Tripod with ring light (works with cell phones); Portable Whiteboard; Podium, Megaphone; Small Sound System; Red Carpet (25ft) with 2 gold stanchions with rope; Folding Tables- 8ft and Chairs (limited quantities) and podcasting equipment.

Contact megan@losalamos.org or alice@losalamos.org for more details.

Pajarito Brewpub (folding tables/chairs) - Los Alamos

Contact Patrick Mockler-Wood, gm@pajaritobrewpubandgrill.com

Cloud 5 Jumpers  (inflatables & more) - Rio Rancho

Contact Kevin Kamplain, cloud5jumpers@gmail.com

505-363-6355

PERMITTING & LOGISTICS

Special Event Permit 

Permits & Vending, Serving Alcohol

Traffic & Streets Requests

Noise Permits

Crowd Manager Training is required for outdoor events for anything over 500 people and then at a ratio of (1) for every 250. https://crowdmanagers.com ($20 fee).

LOCAL EVENT RESOURCES

Welcome Packets are available from the Los Alamos Visitor Center. This can include the Los Alamos Visitor Guide, Food & Beverage Information, Trail Maps and more information that may be applicable to your event attendees. Contact Los Alamos/White Rock Visitor Centers: Discover Los Alamos Director Melanie Peña, melanie@losalamos.org.

Local Concierge List - Discover Los Alamos communicates events of note on a weekly basis to local concierge and also distributes event information across dozens of kiosks around Los Alamos County. For your event to be considered, please send information, including a digital 8.5x11 flyer, to Los Alamos Director Melanie Peña, melanie@losalamos.org.

Meeting Event Venue & Local Catering Options (Catering at the bottom of page)

Restaurant List featuring food and beverage options in Los Alamos & White Rock. For a more detailed list of hours, contact Melanie Peña, melanie@losalamos.org.

Aesthetics & Atmosphere

Event Planners - Wild in Wonder Events & Design

Florists - Flowers by Gillian & Petree Garden Center are two local options.

Food Trucks - For a list of vendors, contact either Brendan Tuning at brendan.tuning@lacnm.us (Los Alamos County) or Jacquelyn Connolly at jacquelyn@losalamos.org (Los Alamos MainStreet & Creative District).

Musicians - Contact Los Alamos Creative District (jacquelyn@losalamos.org) or the Los Alamos Arts Council/Fuller Lodge Art Center (director@losalamosartscouncil.org) for suggestions and contacts. A Creative Directory is currently in development as well.

Other - Have you considered trash removal; if you need grass cut (for outdoor venues); will sprinklers be turned off during your event?

Logistics

Security - Securitas is available for hire in the Los Alamos area. For Los Alamos County sponsored events/programs, coordinate with the Los Alamos Police Department for a police presence or off-duty officer at your function.

Restrooms - Portable restrooms may be available through the following vendors:

Transportation - For local transportation options, please visit the County’s Transportation page for Atomic City Transit, Regional Transit information, or  information on the Discover Los Alamos website.

Volunteers - The Los Alamos Community Foundation (LACF) has established a comprehensive web portal to assist local organizations in better connecting with volunteers. Setup is easy and FREE! Eligible organizations must be located in or serving primarily Los Alamos or Rio Arriba counties and include nonprofits, government units, organizations providing health-related services, and school-based, education-based or recreation/sports-based groups. To enroll your organization, go to VolunteerLosAlamos.org and click on the FAQ banner at the center of the page. You simply upload a logo, a few photos and some basic organization information to get started. Contact Liz Martineau at LACF with questions: liz@losalamoscf.org.

There is also a Facebook group for Volunteers. 

MARKETING & PROMOTIONS

Calendars

FYI Los Alamos: Los Alamos Community Calendar. Submit event to FYILosAlamos.com. No political or religious events are permitted on this community calendar. For questions, contact Annie Kuiper at lavc@losalamos.org.  

County Calendar. Submit events to https://www.visitlosalamos.org/Events.

County TV Screens. If there is programming/events you’d like to highlight on the White Rock Visitor Center and Fuller Lodge screens, please send static graphics to ellyn.felton@lacnm.us for consideration (bulk content for the whole month/season is also accepted). It’s recommended to include a URL or QR code on any slide for people to find more information on your programming; highlighting no more than four activities on each graphic. These digital signs will be updated weekly. Content Specs: 1920 px. X 1080 px.

County Seasonal Booklet. Contact Katherine Hudspeth (katherine.hudspeth@lacnm.us) with the following information. Content is typically due 2 months before booklet distribution. As an example, Summer Booklet is distributed late May (with booklet coverage period late May-early September).

Please include:

Other/Regional Calendars:

Concierge Calendar: Weekly on Mondays, Discover Los Alamos sends out an email with information to local and regional concierge, docents and tours guides, about what is happening in Los Alamos. Send your details to melanie@losalamos.org and your information will also be shared with Visitor Center staff.

Banners - Overpass banners are located along Trinity Ave. near Los Alamos High School Gymnasium and Los Alamos High School Civic Center. Non-profit organizations are eligible for a placement. Contact customercare@lacnm.us no more than three months in advance to receive your placement and permit.

Local Media. Los Alamos has two primary news outlets and other regional publications. 

Los Alamos Daily Post is the newspaper-of-record for the County, has a website and Facebook presence and distributes print editions to all Los Alamos County homes every Thursday. Contact Carol Clark at caclark@ladailypost.com.

Los Alamos Reporter has a website and Facebook presence. Contact Maire O’Neill at  maire@losalamosreporter.com. 

Boomtown Los Alamos is an online news outlet that covers the issues of high interest and consequence to the Los Alamos and White Rock community. Contact Stephanie Nakhleh stephanie@boomtownlosalamos.org with questions or information.  

Some Other Regional Outlets

Los Alamos County Marketing Contact: For news and announcements of interest to Los Alamos County and the region, contact Leslie Bucklin at le.bucklin@lacnm.us.

Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce: For Chamber member news and announcements, contact Sandy Jones at sandy@losalamos.org. Chamber members receive assistance with press releases and marketing, and can also advertise promotions and news in weekly Chamber Messages distributed to all Chamber member businesses locally and in the region. Chamber Business After Hours is another venue to promote your business or event. Participating in Chamber Checks gets your business noticed by those buying/spending Chamber Checks.

Video Promotions: SALA Event Center has several opportunities to stream video promotions. For additional information, please visit https://sala.losalamos.com/advertise/ or fill out a form at the bottom of the website/send an email to sala@losalamos.com. Need help producing video content? SALA has several videographer resources to refer, including Pac8, Main Gate Media and others.

Business and Event Promotions - Misc. Opportunities

Former CB Fox Window Display: limited and temporary availability of prime window space in downtown Los Alamos. Please send your business/event ad to the Chamber of Commerce for coordination and possible placement: sandy@losalamos.org.

Visitor Center Display: Reach out to Melanie Pena with Discover Los Alamos to see if your business or event might qualify for placement in a temporary display in the White Rock Visitor Center: melanie@losalamos.org.

Newcomer Events: On a quarterly basis, projectY cowork hosts an event for newcomers to the community. Contact alice@losalamos.org for details and find out how you can participate. Business and event information should be assisting newcomers with information of value vs. being directly promotional.

NM True: Become certified New Mexico True by visiting this website. Featuring business listings, events and deals across the state and categorized by region and type of product or service.

Hutton Broadcasting Screens: Boost your brand’s visibility through digital displays offered in Santa Fe and throughout region. Learn more here.

Holiday Gift Guide: Organized by Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce and Los Alamos MainStreet. Send your photo and short description to megan@losalamos.org. The guide is typically published in time for Small Business Saturday, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. For an example from a previous year, visit here.

Facebook Groups: The local community leverages Facebook quite extensively and these are several good groups to share your relevant information. Suggest also posting on Nextdoor.

Flyers Distribution

Many local establishments accept flyers, including the following:

East/Downtown

Viola’s, Smith’s Marketplace, Village Arts

Banks

Enterprise Bank & Trust, Zia Credit Union, First National 1870

Central/Downtown

County of Los Alamos Social Services, ProjectY Cowork, Family YMCA

West/Downtown

Aspen Copies, Betty Ehart Senior Center, Metzger’s Hardware, Mesa Public Library, Aquatic Center

North/Downtown

Film Festival, Family Strengths Network, UNM-LA

White Rock

White Rock Branch Library, White Rock Senior Center, Metzger’s Hardware, Hampton Inn and Suites

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Consider sponsoring local events for promotions/community awareness: