Co-Work Office Space - The Working Village

My son and DIL both work from their home.  My son does have some local office space available through his employer if he needs it. He told me he's also experimenting with a co-work office space.  It's a chance to get out and be with other people, but more work focused than a coffee shop.

So yesterday when I was running I realized I should stop in the place - Working Village - I've been passing regularly and check it out.

You can get a

• table spot ($5/hour, $29/day/$339/month), 
• a small cubicle ($15/hour, $99/day, $995/month),  or 
• a larger cubicle for $20/hour, $129/day, $1499/month. 

The phone booth is for more privacy.  Brid, who showed me around, but didn't want to be photographed, said
B:  "the $5 an hour was like being in a coffee shop buying coffee"
S:  But you get coffee there. 
B:  We have coffee and treats too.

Here's an office that someone has moved into fairly permanently.

Working Village, Santa Monica

This seems like a good idea if you're traveling and need more than a desk at a library or hotel room or lobby.  There are computers - both mac and pc - available for rent and free wifi.  But if you're a writer struggling to get by, it would seem you could use those hourly $5 on more important things and find free work space in other spots.

The Working Village does have the great advantage of only being about four blocks from the beach. 
(At the Santa Monica/Venice divide.)

I'm not sure that's enough incentive for me.  But I'm something of an introvert and can work fine home alone.




Looking online, I found another Santa Monica co-working space - Coloft.  It's website pushes the networking possibilities.  I liked their guidelines:

"So here are a few things you need to keep in mind:

1. Be awesome and respect others. ‘Nuff said.
2. Phone Policy: Phone calls are fine, just talk at a normal volume. If you need privacy, or you have to yell at someone, go use our awesome phone booth. If you are always on the phone, this is not the place for you.
3. Introduce yourself to fellow Colofters. They are all awesome.
4. If the coffee is out, either let one of us know, or just make a pot yourself! You’ll probably get lot’s of love for brewing good coffee.
5. Coloft is an open, collaborative space. We don’t believe in cubicles or private offices. If you want to zone out in your productive world, the universal sign is headphones. We have a bunch. Just ask.
6. Keep our space clean. When you leave, another Colofter will most likely sit at that spot. So please keep it clean, take your dirty cups to the dishwasher, and trash your trash."

And they have more flexible options:

Day Pass $35 Day Pass Just passing through... Be sure to fill out this Day Pass form! *Valid M-F, 8:30am-6pm only	Part-Time $279/month This is my kind of space! 12 days/mo* & 3 hours meeting room time *Weekdays only
Full-Time $399/month This is my 2nd home. 24/7 access; 5 hrs meeting room time $550/month Love it so much, I live here. Permanent desk; 5 hrs meeting room time Limited quantity available	Afterhours $199/month I only come out in the night. Access M-F 6pm-8am & weekends $99/month Member* Love it so much, I live here. Add-on *only part-time members & up
Virtual Presence $99/month I'm all about Virtual Reality. Mailbox, business address, 2 days of work space & access to all awesome Coloft events	Add-Ons Locker: $25/month Mailbox: $35/month *Only available on part-time memberships & up

HTML Tables

Anyone using a place like this regularly?  What's your experience?

I also found a place called Desktime where you can search for a temporary office space.  But when I looked up Santa Monica, I got neither of these two places and only four places in the whole LA area.   They do mention a place in downtown Anchorage.

 My EcoDesk is another co-work office search tool.

I know that the United Way in Anchorage has been doing office space sharing for a long time - giving small non-profits a room in a shared space with office amenities - copy machine, etc. - that they can't afford on their own. 

[As regular readers would assume, I didn't get any special benefits for writing this.  They did offer me a 2 hour free trial, but they offer that to everyone.]