Downtown welcomes largest co-working space to date
Those seeking to work in downtown Albany now have another option, as Novel Coworking was officially welcomed to downtown Albany with a ribbon cutting ceremony at their 69 State Street location.
Recognizing downtown Albany as an investment opportunity and wanting to add flexible workspace to what Bennett saw as an underserved market, Novel Coworking purchased the 17-story building located at the corner of N Pearl and State Streets in early 2020. The coworking space opened early last month following renovation of approximately 40,000-square-feet – roughly one third of the building’s 135,000-square-foot space – into Downtown’s largest co-working space to date.
With COVID-19 mandated shutdowns occurring before construction began at the Downtown building, Novel Coworking was able to make changes to plans for the three-story space, including purchasing office furnishings that are more easily cleaned than upholstered pieces, implementing designated traffic flow and a floor plan more conducive to professional distancing, installation of touchless faucets and foot pulls on restroom doors, and temporarily forgoing the drop-in co-working option.
While this location marks their first in New York, the Chicago-based company operates spaces in 30 cities across the country, with ownership of each location’s building affording them the opportunity to make infrastructure and amenity improvements as needed, while keeping membership rates structured to fit any size business. With flexible workspaces, private offices, and SmartSuites™ available, Novel Access Passes start at $219 a month, private offices start at $775 a month, and office suites start at $175 per employee a month. Included in the membership is 24/7 access to the building, all utilities, direct fiber internet, mail service, community app, and coffee bar. Further setting them apart from other area coworking workspaces is the ability for members to personalize their office spaces including painting the walls.
