From left, Jonathan Griffin, Takowork partners Donna Victoria and Michelle Coyle, Mayor Kate Stewart and Laura Barclay of Main Street Takoma cut the ribbon on the new business. Photo by Mike Diegel.
Takowork, a new coworking and event space at 7000 Carroll Ave., 2nd Floor in Takoma Park, held its grand opening Sept. 7.
The flexible use space, formerly occupied by a law firm, was developed for remote workers and entrepreneurs by partners Michelle Coyle and Donna Victoria and will be available for community events in the evenings.
The two took over the space on August 1 and set it up to offer desks, private offices, “phone booths” to take or make private calls, Wi-Fi, a conference room and a kitchen.
“Spaces have been selling faster than we planned,” Victoria said. “We were taking the month of August to set up and people wanted to start working right away.”
The two, as of last night, have 15 tenants signed up, including seven “founding members.” Victoria said tenants include nonprofits, construction workers, consultants, a career coach and others.
Membership levels range from $20 a day for a desk (or $100-$150 per month), a dedicated desk with personalized setup for $300-$350 per month, to team offices for $700-$800 a month. Yearly leases also are available. Each membership comes with a certain level of benefits including access times, complimentary use of the conference room, printing and copying services, and so forth.
Victoria, a political pollster and long-time Takoma Park resident, used to sublet from the law firm who had the offices for more than 25 years.
“I was a one-woman business and it was nice to have a receptionist and some people to chat with,” she said. “It was before coworking became a thing, I was starting to see ‘Oh, there’s some real benefits to not just being isolated.’
“The collaborative work model is the future, and this is an area where a lot of people have diverse work arrangements,” she added.
“Michelle’s motto is ‘Work for yourself, not by yourself,’” Victoria said. “It’s sort of this burgeoning thing when you look at the coworking spaces in downtown Washington, they’re much more expensive, you’re going to have to find parking, and you’re going to have to have a commute. If you live here, this is a much more appealing option.”
Interior spaces were designed to be comfortable and inviting. Photos by Mike Diegel.