I finally made the final choice on my venue! I just was so overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the courthouse that I knew it had to be my venue. If you are thinking about using the courthouse for your wedding, there are a few things you should know.
1. The "coordinator" there is extremely difficult to work with. She sometimes took over 2 weeks to return my calls. Also, she wouldn't send me the contract until one year out from the wedding. On July 5, I started calling her to get the contract. Three weeks later, she finally answered my call. Let me just say I was extremely freaked out during those three weeks that I had lost the venue. If you want her private number, leave me a comment with your email.
2. It costs $525 an hour. If you want the attached parking garage it is another $550. However, you get from 5 PM Friday until 8PM Monday to set up, tear down, etc. They only charge you for your actual ceremony/ reception times. I'm planning on going with the parking, although I'm not sure if it would be absolutely necessary for everyone. It tends to be pretty empty in that area on the weekends.
3. You also have to get liability insurance for $1 MM. Now, most people can do it through their homeowners insurance, but it will cost between $200-400. This is a cost I didn't know about- if it wasn't already enough there!
4. There is no kitchen area, not even a sink. Most caterers will charge you alot more to cater a wedding here, because they need to bring immense quantities of glasses, silverware, and cooking set- ups. No glasses can be washed or reused.
Congrats! And if any readers are having their wedding there, I'd be happy to talk about caterers, rentals, decor ideas, etc. I haven't booked a caterer yet!!
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Hi,
ReplyDeleteWe seem to have A LOT in common. My fiancé and I were Googling "The Courthouse", and came across your blog, which is wonderful. We enjoyed reading all of your entries because we are currently going through the same exact thing (and basically same thought processes).
We are currently down to our top two choices (similar to yours) the Courthouse and Windows on the River. Since you chose the Courthouse, we’d love your opinion and thoughts on a few things:
1. You mentioned the bathrooms in the Courthouse being not quite up to par. We didn’t even consider this when we were there, so we didn’t check them out. How bad are they? How did you get past this in making your decision?
2. One of our biggest concerns at the Courthouse is the “party” aspect of it. We know you mentioned that you love to party and your family loves to dance. Similarly, above any other aspect of the reception, we want to make sure that everyone is having a blast and will be up and on the dance floor the whole night. Are you concerned that the elegance of the Courthouse will hinder guests from letting loose and just having a great time? Also, we were very concerned about the acoustics of the Courthouse (as everything is marble) and the sound quality of a DJ? What will you be doing for entertainment (DJ or band) and do you know how they plan to deal with the acoustics? One “pro” that we felt that Windows has over the Courthouse is that is has a more relaxed atmosphere, but if we’re convinced that an amazing party can been thrown at the Courthouse, it would no longer be a consideration.
3. If we go with the Courthouse, our wedding will most likely be in the fall of 2009 (fall is our favorite season). I definitely know that Sheila can be hard to get a hold of, but I have found that if you call her first thing in the morning, a little after 9:00, she’s always there and will answer. Have you decided on a caterer yet? If we chose the Courthouse, we would most likely go with A Taste of Excellence ~ Chris Winter is an amazing contact there – he’s great!!! I would highly recommend that you check them out. They have a lot of experience with the Courthouse and so far (though we haven’t decided on a venue yet) have been incredibly helpful and provide a lot of personal attention.
Feel free to email me at ebethbrant@yahoo.com if you’d like to discuss some more things offline. My fiancé and I were seriously laughing a lot reading your blogs because we have so much in common!
Good luck in your planning!!
Erin
Hi Ladies!
ReplyDeleteI'm so grateful to have found your blog. I'm interested in having our July 2010 reception at the courthouse as well and I'm having trouble finding a rental link or coordinator contact information. Would you happen to have the link or phone number?
Hi Bride Friends!
ReplyDeleteLauren, you should visit Cuyahoga County Central Services website, Shiela's contact information is located there. Her number is 216.443.7095.
I'm thrilled there is a blog about the Courthouse. I'm having my May wedding there and I too couldn't be happier about the venue. It's costly, but I think working with Chris from the Taste of Excellence will make-up for the difference. Plus, it's so stately it doesn't require any real gussying up, like some of the places we looked at.
I am slightly overwhelmed about the planning process, so I hope I can use this blog and your experiences to help me along the way. Likewise, I'd be glad to update you with my progress and insights too.
Happy planning.
Hey girls, I'm glad anything I write here can be of help. I don't update all the time, but if there is something you are interested in, I can write a post on it. I am still very much in planning stages. Anon has the correct # for Sheila in her comment.
ReplyDeleteHi Friends!
ReplyDeleteI am in the very beginning stages of planning my wedding at the Court House in the Fall of 2011 and would love your input and feedback on how your special days went!!
I am looking to get married in September but heard the Court House does not have AC. Is this true? If so did anyone have a summer wedding and find the facility too warm?
I would also love to know how the music sounded. I am worried about how the acoustics will sound but heard if you have the band/DJ place a carpet under the equipment thats suppose to help.
Another concern of mine is not having enough guests and the Court House looking empty. As of now I am planning on having between 150-175 guests. How big were your weddings and did you feel the place looked empty?
Lastly, I am also looking into A Taste of Excellence and would love to hear how they were on the day of the wedding. Was the food good?
Thanks in advance for all your help! This blog is extermely helpful and I look forward to keeping in touch.
Congrats to all you Newly Weds and Newly Engaged :)
Janine
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteIm trying to plan my wedding for the summer of 2011 and feeling a little nervous about considering a reception venue where you need to bring in your own caterer. When any of you got married and had your reception at the courthouse, did you feel like you ran into some unexpected expenses? please help!
thanks!
kate
I am having my wedding reception downtown this fall and our ceremony site fell through....I am trying to find out if anyone knows if the Courthouse will do ceremonies only? We are struggling to find something non-denominational downtown that will be close to our reception site. We too are having a hard time getting anyone to call us back....
ReplyDeleteThey will do ceremonies only.
ReplyDeleteI actually called today, 2011 brides beware, they are booked every weekend May-October. And there is a new coordinator, Wanda, who seems very nice.
Interested in caterers used at Old Courthouse. What was your price per person, can you make recommendations. Cannot afford $100 per person.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI posted about my catering choices and who I went with on my blog... http://clevelandbride.blogspot.com/2008/10/caterers.html
ReplyDeleteIt was not $100 p/p for food, but when you add in tables, chairs, plates, etc it can get pretty close to that.
Hi everyone, I'm glad that this post has gotten so much interest! I'm embarrassed that it has been almost a year since my wedding, and I have not managed to finish getting all of my pictures and the rest of the day up. I am still able to help with questions, and for those of you with catering questions, I wrote a post on it.
ReplyDeletehttp://clevelandbride.blogspot.com/2008/10/caterers.html
I can write a post detailing the caterer I used and how much you can expect to pay for everything if anyone is interested.
I am thinking about having my wedding here but very concerned about the cost. In the end was the venue worth all the money?? And can you do buffet style there? Any info would be great! Thank you
ReplyDeleteI would love that phone number. My finace and I are looking at the courthouse and have not been able to find out contact information. If you would please e-mail me that would be awesome! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteBecky
rsmrdel@kent.edu
I'm having my wedding at the Courthouse in December 2011. I saw a comment earlier about if they'll only do ceremonies there or not. Wanda told me they will, but only if there is not a reception there that day. Which is probably unlikely with how popular it is as a venue. The one thing I'm still really struggling with is the DJ. Does anyone know of a DJ company that has worked a reception there and the sound quality was good?!?! I need help!
ReplyDeleteI plan on getting married sept 2011 and was considering the old courthouse cause I have an aunt who does cater and would be cheaper to use her. I have yet to hear back from anyone on basic cost of the place and if it is booked does anyone have any suggestions in the northeast ohio area for a wedding?!
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Hello my name is Robyn I am looking to have my wedding reception at the old court house but I can't fine a telephone number to contact anyone! Could someone please email me a number? robynchambers@yahoo.com. Thank you. Congrats and good luck to everyone!
ReplyDeleteI am also looking into having my wedding there. could you please send me the contact info for the Court house... NRCheer03@hotmail.com... Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI'm looking to have my wedding there as well. Can you send me the info to esamt13@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteFor anyone interested in information concerning the Lakeside Courthhouse rental, the phone number at the Cuyahoga County Department of Public Works is 216 443 7095.
ReplyDeleteFor anybody looking for somebody to cater your wedding at the Courthouse call Tricia at Coyne Catering 216-695-1160. I was just in a wedding there on July 4th and they did an amazing job and they were very affordable. Their website is www.coynecatering.com
ReplyDelete