Office Space News
Coworking Entrepreneurs Find Plenty of Options in Chicago
Published September 1st, 2009 by Jennifer LeClaire
The Chicago Tribune is doing the Windy City’s coworking facilities a favor. The newspaper recently highlighted the concept of coworking in its Business section. At the center of the story was OfficePort Chicago, a coworking facility that opened its doors in August.
But before we take a look at Chicago’s latest coworking upstart, check out the Trib’s definition of coworking: “a phenomenon that began in San Francisco, brings together people with different jobs who want to work alongside each other. The arrangement offers an alternative to working alone at home or fighting with other laptop-toting freelancers for electrical outlets at a cafe. And unlike traditional shared office space, coworking is aimed at people looking to socialize and collaborate.”
The Trib also offered up several popular coworking options in Chicago, which we’ll review here:
OfficePort Chicago, or OfficePort CHI as they call it, claims to be rewriting the rules of office space. OfficePort bills itself as the only turnkey, zero-committed, shared work environment for freelancers, job seekers and small businesses. There’s no contracts to sign and no business plans to submit. OfficePort CHI is in the heart of the Loop and prices range from $400 to $550 a month.
Ravenswood Coworking Group can accommodate 24 people. The space caters to creative types, such as film editors and Web designers. But you’ll also find a mobile phone repairman, a fair trade chocolate saleswoman and other entrepreneurs cozied up there – and even partnering on projects. The group didn’t publish its rates.
The Coop is a mixed-use creative space nestled in Chicago’s Fulton market. It offers daily, weekly and monthly plans, complete with a T-1 Internet connection and an office dog! The rates are $20 a day, $90 a week or $300 a month.
Designers, developers, writers, artists, entrepreneurs, marketing professionals meet up via Jelly Chicago. Jelly Chicago meets every Monday and Wednesday at Noble Tree Coffee from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Anyone is welcome to come. This is the heart of coworking, where folks get together in a coffee shop to break the monotony of working from home.
Of course, these aren’t the only coworking camps in Chicago, but these are the better-known hangouts for entrepreneurs who crave social interaction. I’d love to hear from anyone who has used these or other coworking facilities and Jelly groups in Chicagoland.
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About the Author
Marcus Hester September 1st, 2009 at 11:19 am
It’s great to see there such an active coworking community in Chicago. I think this OfficePort company also has office space in Kansas City, if I’m not mistaken. This is an emerging brand in the coworking space. I wonder what caused them to leap from Kansas City to Chicago, and where they might head next.
Rob Zeus September 1st, 2009 at 11:55 am
Coworking is super cool. This is a growing phenomenon in major cities. Yeah, it started in San Francisco, or at least it got hot there before it trailed into other cities. But coworking is definitely a concept whose time has come. Traditional office space just doesn’t cut it for a lot of entrepreneurs and working from home can be a drag.
Elizabeth Sanchez September 1st, 2009 at 12:34 pm
I don’t think I could deal with the environment in a coworking facility. I need peace and quiet to get anything done. That said, I think the Jelly concept is absolutely wonderful. I need to check and see if they have one of those in my area. That is just enough togetherness to break the isolation, but not enough togetherness to break the concentration, if you know what I mean. Nice spread on the Chicago office space scene, btw.
Maggie Correta September 1st, 2009 at 1:10 pm
I like the Chicago Tribune’s definition of coworking. I don’t think coworking actually started in San Francisco, though. I heard the first coworking facility was up in the Northeast somewhere. But there’s no doubt this alternative to traditional office space made a name for itself in San Francisco. I guess with market conditions like they are, people are looking for cheaper ways to rent office space. This is a great solution for creative types.
Shaul Jolles September 11th, 2009 at 8:30 pm
Marcus, We’ve seen the concept of coworking work elsewhere and wanted to create that success in Chicago also. The main thing we want to do: Build organic entrepreneurship with real collaboration (not made up bureaucratic entrepreneurship).
From observation we noticed a lot of red tape when it came to getting a space, licenses, setting up internet and phone services. OfficePort is sensitive to these hurdles and want to cut through the “usual” problems Chicago businesses can face and make life easier for them. Hope that answers your question on why we chose Chicago. More to come though.
Shaul Jolles
founder