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Guest FAQs

PARKING
 

Why do we park our guests on the grass? Why not just remove all the trees and buildings and put in a parking lot?

It's our intent to preserve the 100 year history of Elm Lake and the Wolf Creek Retreat as close to the original swimming hole that existed for decades. The guests who came to swim at Elm Lake from 1920 on used to park on Wolf Creek Pike when there was virtually no population out here in Perry Township, and the Police Department didn't care. Now, that is no longer possible. We hope our guests will appreciate the "Walk down Memory Lane" that makes us unique from other wedding venues.  We have a system that places vehicles in patterns that insures NO ONE is EVER blocked in. That's why it's important that our guests follow our parking instructions; we want everyone to be able to pull out whenever they need to leave. Ladies, you may want to rethink the high heels as the Wolf Creek Retreat is surrounded by acres of beautiful grass. As our soil is a sandy loam, it rarely gets muddy as rain percolates right through the grass. We sincerely hope you'll enjoy the adventure of walking back in time to a more simple and joyful get together.

GOLF CART

Our golf carts are utilized to quickly move cars off Wolf Creek and into the parking area. Because of the hill in front of the property, visibility to drivers can be limited so we have a system to quickly move cars from the street onto our property.  Use of the golf cart to transport guests is not part of our contracted services, as our insurance company will not extend coverage to transport guests.

HANDICAPPED AND DISABLED GUESTS 

Our golf cart is utilized to quickly move cars off of Wolf Creek so we don't have a backup of cars on the street. Your hostess and host are responsible for their guests while they utilize the facility. Handicapped/disabled guests must arrive an 1.5 hours before ceremony so their driver can drop them off at foot bridge and make arrangements to transport them to the Pavilion. Your host is responsible for providing a rental golf cart for the use of transporting guests if they desire. Handicapped guests are welcome to use the ground level restrooms in the Bridal Suite at no charge regardless if their  host/hostess purchased the use of the Bridal Suite. Just call Chris and she will unlock the Bridal Suite for their use.

ADA ACCOMMODATIONS

The Wolf Creek Retreat has fewer than 15 employees so we are not required to adhere to the ADA. However, we built ramps on our footbridge to be wheelchair accessible, and we will provide a ground level restroom if it is requested. Your host/hostess can purchase a shuttle service package if they choose to shuttle handicapped/disabled guests to and from the Pavilion.

Effective Dates Beginning July 26,1992, employers with 25 or more employees are prohibited from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities. Two years later, on July 26, 1994, all employers with 15 or more employees will be covered. Employers with fewer than 15 employees are exempt. The EEOC and the Department of Justice (DOJ) regulations clearly mandate that all state and local governments, regardless of the number of employees and the receipt of federal funds, are covered by either the ADA employment provisions or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Government entities are covered by Section 504 until the ADA effective date is triggered in relation to the number of people they employ. All governments with fewer than 15 employees must abide by the Section 504 employment requirements. EFFECTIVE DATES OF EMPLOYMENT PROVISIONS ADA Titles Minimum # of Employees Effective Date Title I (Employment) 25 July 26, 1992 Title I (Employment) 15 July 26, 1994 Title II (State & Local 1 January 26, 1992 Governments)

WHAT IS A DIY WEDDING VENUE?

What is a DIY wedding venue, and is the Wolf Creek Retreat a DIY wedding venue? Yes, the Wolf Creek Retreat is a DIY wedding venue. We ONLY provide the venue (grounds, parking lot, lighting, tables/chairs and Pavilion), showing your guests where to park, and cleaning up and removing the guest's trash at the end of the evening. We are not responsible for transporting guests from the parking lot to the Pavilion.  The caterer is solely responsible for bringing food and the ability to keep that food warm/cold, the DJ for the selection of the music (we don't have WiFi), the florist for the floral decorations, and so forth. We use this model to insure the largest savings to our clients, who we have learned are completely capable of choosing their own vendors and communicating their instructions and choices to them directly. This is how we deliver the most beautiful wedding experience and save our clients thousands of dollars compared to the competition.

RESTROOMS

The Wolf Creek Retreat is an Historical property that dates back to 1920. When the original "Elm Lake" was a swimming destination, the men's and lady's restrooms were located inside the old Bath House, which was torn down in the 1980's. Since that time, Perry Township, where we are located, has instituted Zoning laws that addresses where restrooms and plumbing can be located. The location by the lake is completely in Flood Plain, and flushing toilets cannot be located there. However, we are updating the little cabin by Wolf Creek Pike to offer flushing toilets as part of the Honeymoon Harbor Bridal Suite, which will be available to our clients at an additional $300 fee by May of 2022.

ALCOHOL 

We offer a 4.5 hour timeframe for serving alcohol. The Wolf Creek Retreat is not a self serve wedding venue. For insurance purposes, all alcohol must be served by an insured bartender, so that individual can insure no one is overserved, and also that minors are not being served. As a consequence of that, all alcohol beverages must be dispensed by the bride and groom's designee - the insured bartender. We follow the same guidelines that bars and restaurants follow in the State of Ohio. A guest/client cannot walk into a bar or restaurant that serves alcohol, walk behind the bar and serve themselves. This would cause a huge liability problem. Guests and wedding party are asked to not bring their personal alcohol onto the Wolf Creek Retreat premises for this reason. Two warnings about this alcohol violation will result in the termination of the event and the loss of the client's Performance Deposit. This is not designed to be punitive, but to protect our clients and guests from liability if someone is involved in an accident and alcohol served at the wedding event is involved. 

SMOKING

The Wolf Creek Retreat offers a smoking area just south of the Pavilion. It can be recognized by the yellow cigarette disposal can located in that area. There is No Smoking permitted on any other Wolf Creek grounds. Thank you so much for your support of this policy.

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