CurlyDave said:
Eddie:
Internet can be wireless, which I think would be a lot less costly to install, you just have to be sure to have coverage at all the sites.
Good cell phone coverage is nice, but you might not be able to do anything aobut that.
When we are RVing, something less frequent now that we have bought property, we always liked paved sites much better, and pull-thru sites were great. The closer to level the better, for all of us without automatic levelers. I always thought asphalt was just as good as concrete, although in the Texas summer that might not be true.
You could probably charge extra for paved sites.
A lot of people have satellite TV and some have satellite internet. This is not compatible with large trees and shade. Others like the shade trees, so some of both kinds of sites would be good.
One of the features we saw at a few parks was a place to wash RVs. They get dirty and most places won't let you wash them at your site. A special area for this, even if you charge for it, would be great.
Information about activities and points of interest in your area would be good.
An off-leash pet walking area, even if it is nothing more than a fenced area with gravel, would keep us coming back. Decide ahead of time if you will allow dogs to swim in your lake. DW and I used to camp frequently at a place along the Rogue River in Oregon, just because the dogs could swim in the river. We must have spent a month there while we were looking for property, making offers and such.
Well over half of all the RV people we met had pets of some sort or another, you have to decide ahead of time on the rules here. We always chose places where our dogs were welcome, but there were parks that didn't allow them, which we avoided.
Another interesting thing, which I saw at a few campgrounds was a clubhouse or lounge, with room to sit in the evening and a TV. I would personally avoid serving alcohol, but you could sell snacks and such, even from vending machines. Who knows, alcohol might be a great big profit center, worth the problems it can cause, but you have to decide and get the proper permits.
Hey Dave,
The internet option is still kind of up in the air. Of the RV Park owners I've talked to, none are happy with the wireless service. Lack of coverage in all areas, billing issues and lack of service once installed are all common complaints. I'm hoping that one company will start to stand out over the others. Another problem I have is that I really don't want to have guests paying for every littel thing. I'm a big fan of one price for everything.
The phone company said they can run a T1 or a subT1 line here that should handle everything better than WiFi can. It's pricey, but in the long run, might be the best choice.
Cable isn't availabel either, so I'm going to have to become a Cable provider like apartment complexes are. I pay for a block of channels and give it to my overnight guests and charge my long terms ones.
Level sites will be a must. There is no excuse for not making them flat and parks that have unlevel sites get allot of complaints about that. Blacktop doesn't hold up to the jacks. They just crumble. Concrete is the ideal surface, but it's pricey. Gravel is what I'll have to start with until I can afford concrete.
That's a good idea about local points of interest. How would you make that available? Store? Website? Brochure?
The pet issue is a hot one. I go to
RV.Net : RV Accessories, Supplies, Classifieds, Insurance, Financing & More all the time and read the forums. Pets are very important to owners and are also a major complaint to non pen owners. Barking is the biggest complaint, so I'll have to stay on top of that. I'm unsure about the unleashed dog area. I have an area that I'm clearing for trails that will be good for dog walking. It's heavily wooded with lots of shade. If I do an unleashed area, I'll need to fence it. I'd also have to seperate big dogs from small dogs, which means two fenced areas. This seems like a big much for me, but I bet the dog owners would love it. I'm leaning towards a leash rule. All pets must be on a leash and under the owners control at all times. The poop propblem is also something that I'll have to deal with. Garbage cans with plastic bags for picking it up will have to be spread out also.
I hadn't considered allowing dogs to swim in the lake. My first thought is to not allow this. They would have to be off leash and it would just take one bad dog to cause other people trouble. I won't allow people to swim or play in the lake, so I think I'll do the same with pets.
There is way too much money to be made off RV'ers with pets to turn them away. All pets will be allowed, but they must be on a leash and not allowed to bark.
There will be three clubhouse/meeting rooms 24x24 as part of my laundromats and bathroom buildings. They will have TV's, kitchenets, sofa's and meeting tables. Guest will be able to reserve these rooms for meetings, or they will be open for anybody to use. I'm also working on a large building that I can split in half for large groups. I want to have a screen that will devide it for two groups, or open it up and allow one huge group. It's still in the thinking stage until I finish the pad and know how much space I have.
The land is in a "dry" county. If I aplied for a license, I could serve to "members" but it's comlicated. Seven miles away is the county line, so people can get there beer or whatever they want there. It's close enough that I'm not going to bother with it. Too many headaches that I'd just as soon avoid.
Thanks,
Eddie
