Imagine arriving at your office only to discover that a mewling litter of kittens has taken up residence in your cubicle. You can’t tune out the sound, so you pack up and relocate to the conference room. But alas, twenty minutes after you’ve settled in, one of your co-workers comes in for his daily tuba practice session. You move to an empty cubicle, and just as you are finally gathering your thoughts, a passing administrative assistant drops a huge load of fresh laundry onto your desk, asking you to fold it, since you’re “just sitting there.” By the time the laundry is done, it’s lunch hour.
As bizarre as this scenario may sound, for many small business owners, freelancers, and remote workers, it’s all too real. Home may be where the heart is, but for many, it’s definitely not where the productive workday takes place.
What’s a “creative” to do?
A small but growing number of Portland-area professionals are discovering the joys of co-working, an arrangement in which a variety of independent professionals lease work space in a cooperative office.
By pooling resources, non-traditional workers can enjoy the conveniences of a traditional office, such as a central location, access to office equipment, and a quiet, orderly work environment that might be difficult to come by at home.
In addition to the benefits of separating home and work life, many tenants rave about the natural opportunities for networking that a co-working environment creates. On any given day in a co-working space, a writer might get to rub elbows with a software developer, a web-designer, an architect, and an entrepreneur.
“Our members are connected into many things in Portland and very willing to share with one another,” explains Mark Grimes of NedSpace, “Many of the programmers, designers, coders, and other members have found paid work from other NedSpace members over the course of their time here.”
Thinking that a day at the office sounds like a nice change of pace? Here, we’ve rounded up a few of the co-working hotspots in town. And for those of you who aren’t quite ready to re-commit to the nine-to-five scene, we’ve include a couple of great coffee shops that cater to freelancers on both sides of the river!
TenPod
TenPod is a hit with the creative professionals who rent desk space at their two beautiful, naturally-lit eastside locations. At their Burnside Rocket location, workers enjoy spectacular views of the city, great access to public transportation, and the convenience of several nearby eateries and bars, including Doug Fir, Report Lounge, and Noble Rot, where tenants often get together for happy hour. You’ll have to get in line though; both locations are currently full!
Ode to Rose’s, 3435 NE 45th Ave.; Burnside Rocket, 1111 E Burnside St.
NedSpace
NedSpace has locations in both downtown and Old Town. Both spacious locations offer offices and dedicated desks, as well as first-come, first-served desks at a lower rate. Tenants enjoy access to a kitchen, Internet service, bike parking, and conference rooms, all included in the price of membership. NedSpace is currently leasing.
NedSpace Old Town, 505 NW Couch; NedSpace Downtown, 920 SW 3rd Ave. (between Taylor & Salmon)
Hive
As part of the Left Bank Project, Hive currently has about 15 members, including a “healthy mix” of creatives, software developers, and startup entrepreneurs. All Hive members have access 24/7, and each one has a dedicated work station. Membership includes Wi-Fi, a kitchen with cool retro lockers in it, bike parking, and access to two conference rooms. “Hivers” also enjoy convenient access to Left Bank’s shower and lockers and a café just outside the door of their office. Hive currently has two open desks.
Hive, 240 N Broadway
Jelly
Jelly is a “free, casual co-working” event that makes it possible for freelancers and other Lone Ranger types to “meet new friends, share common interests, trade ideas, brainstorm, get some work done, go out to lunch together, and maybe even get some business referrals.” Times, dates, and locations change with each event; for more information, check out WorkAtJelly.com or the PDX Jelly page on Yelp!
Cloud Seven Café
As evidenced by the full house of laptop-toting worker bees in dress shirts, Cloud Seven Café has truly catered to the professional who is serious about getting some work done. Software designer and Cloud Seven patron Darren Buckner is so serious about finding cafés that serve working professionals that he’s started collecting data on each of the places he visits. Cloud Seven has nearly all of the things he looks for in a great work environment: Easy access to public transportation, quality food, speedy Internet access, lots of outlets, and generous workspace. “A lot of our customers are freelancers,” said one barista. “We like having them here. One of our customers just became a New York Times best-selling author.”
Cloud Seven Café, 901 NW 10th Ave.
Crema Coffee + Bakery
Presbyterian pastor Brian Prentice explains the appeal of working at Crema: “There’s always excellent coffee, great snacks, and it’s walking distance from my house.” On any given day, students and freelancers fill the tables at Crema to enjoy their reliable Internet, friendly customer service, and delicious baked goods. Like many other people who work independently, Prentice enjoys the opportunity to mingle with other professionals that a trip to Crema affords him. “Having a change of scene helps me to be more productive. And being out in the community, around other Portlanders, helps me keep things in perspective.”
Crema Coffee + Bakery, 2728 SE Ankeny St.
Do you have any good (or bad) co-working experiences? Do you have other spots around town where you like to work? Share them in the comments!
Great article about collaborative work environments. It's been a pleasure to watch new spaces pop up around Portland, especially considering we lost CubeSpace a few years back and may now lose Souk. There are other similar spaces around town you didn't mention, like the MindShare FlexSpace off MLK in NE Portland. While the space is largely full, it is a relatively new but viable alternative for those on the East side.
i'm surprised you'd sooner mention crema over albina press
My favorite co-work space is Collective Agency. They are a very new space (Opened August 1st) in the heart of Old Town on Sixth between Flanders and Evert that focuses on the community of co-working. Check it out! http://collectiveagency.co/
I have to give my favorite co-working space, Shared Space, a plug here, because it has been a godsend for me, it's incredibly affordable, and its the only thing like it way out here in the FoPo area.... We're at the intersection of Holate and Foster (6317 SE Holgate). If you want more info, comment back...