Read your contract very carefully. About 8 1/2 months before the date my husband and I were holding for our scheduled reception, we were forced to cancel. We believed that we were well within a window to at least receive a partial refund on our deposit (the standard is 75% with more than 6 months notice, 50% at 6 months, and nothing after 3 months)... literally EVERY other venue we looked at used the same schedule, so I made the assumption that this was the same. BIG MISTAKE. Their deposits are COMPLETELY non-refundable.
This was clearly my own fault for getting carried away and pressured by our planner to set the location and then not reading the specifics of the contract... but the 1 star is for crappy business policies. More than 8 months is MORE than plenty of time to rebook the space, ESPECIALLY for what was going to be a Monday evening event. Shame on you 12 W for taking advantage of people.