Plan Your Event at the Hunter

• Daytime rentals available upon request.
• Saturday rentals from March through December require a minimum of the Contemporary Wing or River Terrace rental.
• Evening events may begin no earlier than 6:00 PM and end no later than 12:00 AM for a 4-hour rental.
• An additional hour may be added for $500 or two additional hours for $1,500.3-hours for setup and 1.5 hours for breakdown is included in the rental fee.
• Non-profit discounts are available with proof of 501(c)3.

A date can be placed on a complimentary hold for 10 business days, or until we receive another inquiry for that date. All contracts are due with a non-refundable deposit of 50% of the rental fee within 10 business days of the issue date.

• Clients must provide a Certificate of Liability Insurance (COLI) with a minimum coverage of $1,000,000 for all events. Renter is liable for any damages or injury to property or guests.
• Catering, linens, florals, and décor must be provided by approved vendors. All event details are subject to approval.
• The Museum does not allow the use of live candles, matches, ferns, balloons, glitter, confetti, rice, paper lanterns, fountains, feather boas, or artificial snow. Clients may not attach any décor to the Museum walls.
• Alcoholic beverages and bartending services must be provided through the Museum only. See Alcohol Guidelines for more information.
• Food, beverages, and/or flash photography are not allowed in the galleries.
• The Museum is a smoke-free environment for both indoor and outdoor spaces. Smoking is allowed in designated areas only.
• Renters may not display, sell, give away, or auction artwork of any type. Items included as a part of a fundraising event must be pre-approved.
• On occasion, events may have large/heavy equipment needs/setup (staging, tents, etc.). If such equipment is not needed for the next day’s client, you may be charged additional fees from your purveyor for removal of equipment before the next event

For your convenience, the Hunter Museum retains a liquor license, stock, and bartenders. We also serve soda, juice, and mixers. Client must request alcohol service needs no less than 30 days prior to an event date. Any alcohol service request made less than 30 days out will be fulfilled as possible, but no special-order requests can be honored without proper notification. All bar selections must be finalized no less than 14 days prior to the event.

The Museum’s alcoholic beverage license requires us to (a) request a valid photo identification of any person who appears to the bartenders as under the legal drinking age, and (b) refuse alcoholic beverage service without photo ID, if underage, or appears heavily intoxicated.

Alcohol is charged based on consumption, per drink, except for champagne or sparkling. Our standard pour is 1 ¼ ounce for liquor and 5 ounces for wine. Under no circumstances will we provide double pours or multiple drinks to guests per visit to the bar. Guests may never serve themselves and last call is always 30 minutes before the event ends.

Alcohol may be donated for non-profit events only, with an approved 501(c)3 and proof of a Special Event Permit issued by the TABC Board.

In addition to base rental rates, there is a required additional fee for staffing and facility maintenance/cleaning. This includes an event lead, facility staff, event security guards and an armed Chattanooga Police Officer. Fee is determined by final guest count. The fee for guest counts of 250 and under is $700; 250 – 499 guests is $1,000; and 500+ guests is $1,750.

We require one bartender for every 50 guests. Bartenders are $200 each for a 4-hour event, $225 for a 5-hour event, and $250 for a 6-hour event. Clients may not furnish their own bartenders. Event needs that include multiple locations, wine or champagne service, higher guest counts, and/or passed drinks require additional bar staff. The Events Manager/Coordinator can help determine how best to service your guests as well as the number of bar staff needed. In the event there is no alcohol served, the Museum still requires an event support staff and, depending on the event, 1 for every 100 people. For events that fall on holidays or holiday weekends, there is a 40% price increase on staffing.

The Museum owns stemless wine and champagne glasses, and rocks glasses for guest counts under 300. For guest counts greater than 300, we recommend you either rent additional glassware or use disposables. The Museum provides black linens for all bars at no charge to the client. In the case the client would prefer another color, they may rent linens, but the Museum is not responsible for the cost or the action of renting the linens.

All bars include a selection of stock liquor, wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages. Selections are subject to change without notice depending on availability and season. We also offer batched specialty cocktails. Prices vary, so please contact a Special Events Coordinator for pricing. Client is responsible for the cost of ALL special alcohol ordered, not just what is consumed. Special order alcohol may not leave the premise after the event has ended. The Hunter Museum does not allow kegs. Wine can be brough in for a handling fee of $60 per case upon approval.

• HOST BAR – The client is responsible for the entire bar bill following the event in addition to the bartender fee.
• CASH BAR – The client is responsible for the bartender fee, but guests pay for their own beverages. The Museum does not hold open tabs for guests.
• TICKETED BAR – The client is responsible for the bartender fee as well as the drinks served with a ticket. After guests use a ticket, the bar can become a cash bar.

*Please ask your Special Events Coordinator for a list of our current selections.

• The Hunter Museum has a parking lot located onsite that can be used for your event. In that lot, we can only guarantee 10 parking spaces. Some spaces will need to be used for vendors and staff.
• Valet service is not provided through the Hunter Museum but can be rented through Bird Dog Valet.Clients may also shuttle guests the outer roundabout.
• High Street has “on street” parking available, but please do not park in Bluff View’s parking lots.
• The Houston Museum (located next door) has 20 parking spaces, and it is a pay per use lot or can be rented.
• Republic Parking has also acquired the old Unum lot on Walnut and 3rd Street. It holds about 117 spaces and can be rented by calling (423) 265 – 3218.