General Policies
1) The legal drinking age in Quebec is 18. Minors accompanied by adults are allowed at events (Weddings, etc.). Proper identification must be provided upon request;
2) Drinking games are strictly prohibited;
3) Gambling of any form (e.g. poker) is prohibited on PGSS property. A charity event in which fake money is used is allowed;
4) Alcohol purchased on the premises must be consumed on the premises;
5) Individuals or groups are not permitted to bring beverages onto the premises alcoholic or non-alcoholic. Any alcohol found being brought in will be confiscated and the individual or group may be asked to leave the premises;
6) Illegal drugs are prohibited by federal and provincial laws. Persons found consuming illegal substances on the premises will be asked to leave;
7) Smoking, including vaping is strictly prohibited on the premises. Those smoking or vaping must do so outdoors and are required by law to maintain a distance of at least 30 feet (9 meters) from the entrances;
8) The PGSS is subject to the regulations found in the McGill Student Rights and Responsibilities” Handbook
9) All groups booking space at Thomson House must abide by general rules of good and proper conduct as per the Thomson House rules in Appendix I
10) All food and beverage service to be invoiced is subject to a 15% gratuity charge on the pre-tax amount of the service.
Booking Your Event
1) Booking requests may be made online (http://www.thomsonhouse.ca/contact/).
By phone 514.398.3756 and ask to speak with the House Manager.
In person at 3650 McTavish Room 402.
By e-mail to hm.pgss@mail.mcgill.ca.
Once a booking has been approved, a contract between the event organizers and a Thomson House representative may be required, at the discretion of the TH rep.
2) Internal groups (PGSS GSAs, LSA and MSS groups, collectively referred to as Member Groups) will be given booking priority, followed by McGill faculty/department groups, and then groups/individuals external to the PGSS and McGill.
3) Members’ Events will be charged for spaces (Ballroom, Restaurant, Weekend Bookings, bookings outside of normal hours, or bookings over two (2) hours in length for Boardrooms or Lounges) at a reduced rate.
i) A Member’s Event is defined as an event booked by a recognized Member Group (i.e. GSA, Law Undergrad or Med Undergrad group.) with Members representing the vast majority of attendees.
a. Events booked by McGill Groups which are open to anyone at McGill (i.e. SSMU clubs) will be treated as a McGill Event in all circumstances.
b. Personal/Private events, such as birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and such, are all treated as External Events in every case.
ii) Please note that rates are non-transferable, i.e. the Member rate is only available to member groups, not to departments or external groups, even when members may be the focus of the event. The same goes for McGill group events being paid for by external groups.
iii) For invoicing, in all cases the invoice for the event will be sent to the person/group organizing the event. The organizing person/group is responsible for ensuring the bill is paid within 30 days. We cannot coordinate payment with a third party, nor can we split the invoice into multiple parts to be sent to various groups. Collection of funds for payment is solely the responsibility of the organizing group/person.
4) At the discretion of the Thomson House Management, security may be required for certain events.
5) No groups are allowed to sell food or beverages for any reason at any events on the premises.
6) Thomson House offers full in-House catering services.
a) External Catering is not permitted.
b) Pot-Luck events are permitted for student groups and departmental events only. Please ask for our Pot-Luck policy for further details.
7) All advertising and event promotional material for events (posters, flyers, on-line ads, etc.) must be approved by the House Manager prior to distribution. Failure to obtain approval may result in the cancellation of the event. It is the responsibility of the event organizers to respect the regulations governing the distribution of advertising material on the McGill University Campus, as well as any applicable laws of the City of Montreal.
8) Groups must inform the House Manager of any sponsorship for an event by an external company or organization. Failure to do so may result in the cancellation of the event;
9) Any group charging admission to an event will retain 100% of ticket sales if the group provides volunteers to collect money at the door. Groups must specify if there will be an admission fee for the event when completing the booking request;
10) Groups may request that coat check be used for an event at the time of booking, however the coat check option is only available for weekend (Saturday or Sunday) bookings. There is a $50 fee for setting up a coat check, with your volunteers running it. If Thomson House staff are needed to run the coat check, the $50 set up fee will be waived, and 100% of coat check revenues will be retained by Thomson House; if we do set up a coat check and it is to be staffed by the House and the set-up fee is waived, the coat check will be mandatory for all guests.
11) a) IT & A/V Services
Please note that Thomson House does not provide professional IT services. We will set-up all of the equipment/supplies we offer, i.e. data projectors, PA system, microphones, DJ equipment, flat screen TVs, etc., and are able to trouble-shoot the most common issues you may encounter. If your event is heavily dependent on the use of IT you may want to consider finding a volunteer from within your group that has experience, or hiring a third party technician.
b) Internet Access
i) Thomson House provides access to the McGill wireless network. If you do not have a McGill username and password you will need to contact the person organizing your event, assuming they are McGill faculty/staff or graduate level students, and have them arrange a guest account with McGill ICS.
ii) We cannot arrange or provide guest accounts on your behalf.
12) Thomson House hours are as follows for the first Tuesday in Septemeber to the first Monday in May:
Monday-Wednesday 9:30am to 12:00am
Thursday-Friday 9:30am to 2:00am
Saturday-Sunday upon reservation only
Summer hours are as follows for the Last Friday in April, to the Friday before Labour Day:
Monday-Thursday 11:30am to 10:00pm
Friday 11:30am to 11:00pm
Saturday-Sunday upon reservation only
13) For ballroom or weekend bookings it is possible to stay open until 3am, but this must be arranged when the booking is made, and additional fees will apply;
14) Last call is 30 minutes before the bar closes;
15) The music must be turned down 15 minutes before the bar closes/event is scheduled to end;
16) Audio/visual equipment (data projectors, P.A. system, etc.) is available for use by groups booking the restaurant or ballroom, and must be reserved prior to the event. The event organizers are responsible for any damaged caused to the rented sound or a/v equipment.
17) AV equipment rented from Thomson House will be setup by our staff.
18) Thomson House staff will take care of the set up and take down of all furniture, tables and chairs and equipment we provide. It is generally expected that a single arrangement of the room be required for any given event.
a) If a changeover in the configuration of the room is required during an event this will result in an increase of the booking fee, even if said changeover is not taken into account in the initial quote for the rental of the space.
19) The use of smoke machines, paint, permanent markers, powders, liquids, candles, glitter, etc. is not allowed unless otherwise authorized by a Thomson House Manager. Organizers will be charged for any damages related to the use of such products.
20) Do not use scotch tape to affix posters or anything else to walls, tables, doors, or any equipment or fixture in the House under any circumstances. Charges will be applied for damages related to the use of scotch tape.
21) PGSS is not responsible for any lost or stolen goods or damages.
22) Cancellation Policy
Boardroom/Main Floor Lounge Reservations during regular business hours
If notice of cancellation is received 3 business days prior to the event, no penalty will be incurred
Cancellations received with less than 3 business days’ notice, or 'no-shows', will be subject to the full charge of the event.
Restaurant/Lounge/Ballroom/Weekend Bookings
If notice of cancellation is received a minimum of 1 month prior to the event no penalty will be incurred
Cancellations received between 2 and 4 weeks of the scheduled event will be subject to a charge of half of the room booking cost.
Cancellations received within 2 weeks of the scheduled event will be subject to the full charge of the event.
*Wedding bookings are subject to a separate cancellation policy.
23) The above policies and regulations are subject to change without notice.
Appendix I
Chapter 11: Rules Regarding the Use of Thomson House
Section 1: House Rules
1. The Management shall be responsible for the following, and may create policies covering them, unless otherwise directed by the Board: the serving of alcohol, bar rules, proper behaviour, facilities and equipment, room booking, opening hours, and parking.
2. Such management policies shall be posted in a manner that is accessible to members, as deemed necessary by the Board.
3. Management is defined as per the Employee Policy Manual.
Section 2: Members and Guests
1. All persons present shall be employees, members in good standing, guests of members duly signed in by members, or persons attending an authorized special function, for which a contract has been completed.
2. Except for Officers of the Society, or employees, or persons authorized by them, no persons shall be permitted in Thomson House outside of normal business hours.
3. All persons may be asked for proof of membership to one of the categories under the corporate operations manual.
4. Persons entering the premises may be required to establish their membership by showing an appropriate I.D. card.
5. There shall be no gambling permitted in the Thomson House at any time.
6. No persons at Thomson House shall engage in any behaviour that is loud, vulgar, destructive, or illegal or that may be objectionable on any other grounds.
7. No one shall have exclusive use of any of the 'public' areas of Thomson House, except where a specific contract has been made.
8. Anyone found contravening any law (Municipal, Federal or provincial) or rule associated with the operation of Thomson House shall be subject to immediate eviction from the premises, and in the case of a member, subject to suspension or revocation of all privileges.
9. Cases of misconduct shall be reported to the Board, which shall decide what action to take and to which appeals may be made, but this shall not prejudice the right of employees to take immediate action as they see fit.
10. A regular member may entertain his/her spouse or equivalent and no more than two (2) invited guests without prior arrangement with management employees.
11. A guest, who is eligible for associate membership, shall not be admitted to Thomson House more than six (6) times a year at the discretion of the PGSS Board.
12. Members shall sign in their invited guests in the guest register in the main lobby. For convenience, members may choose to pre-sign their expected guests in the guest register.
13. Members shall be responsible for the conduct of their guests on the premises of Thomson House.
Section 3: Smoking
1. Smoking shall be prohibited in Thomson House.
Section 4: Bar
1. All persons in the bar shall be of legal age.
2. There shall be no alcoholic beverages brought upon or removed from the premises.
3. Intoxicated or unruly persons shall not be served.
