Our Vision

We were meant to live and work together! The internet has impacted much of how we view the world and what we do in it. And wifi has allowed many workers in our economy to get tasks done from anywhere with a strong enough signal.

With the prevelance of traditional employers allowing or encouraging a remote work option both at big city companies and right here in Grand Rapids (exacerbated by 2020's unprecedented reactions), professionals are being displaced from a traditional work community. Others are actively choosing the flexibility offered by a strong wifi connection. Still others are in the early stages of building their own businesses without employees or overhead. People are working from home (WFH) in cramped apartments, children's bedrooms, kitchen tables, and-- realizing something is amiss-- they are venturing out to public spaces. Coffee shops. Libraries. Bars.

Most of us are longing for human interaction. The US Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS) has declared loneliness an epidemic*. Human beings are social creatures, meant to be in relationship. Without the office space, where do we go now to forge professional or collegial relationships? Our vision for The Cottage is to extend relational hospitality to professionals:

• A coworking space to offer a community for curious and courageous truth seekers;

• A community event space for art exhibits, lecture series, and poetry readings;

• A beautiful encounter with the transcendentals through the discipline of work, the access to a curated library of good books, history, and philosophy, all while encompassed in the preserved and restored architectural features of a centennial building.

Responding to this persistent need for community and connection, we intend to expand the idea of transforming the transactional into the relational. The Cottage at 429 Turner is...

• A space with a high walkability score*; so people have the opportunity to slow down and interact with their surroundings;

• A space that will be conducive to laptop/office work, and also elevate its membership to pursue virtue alongside their livelihood;

• A space with elements of Beauty so we can be inspired toward Goodness.

Whether captaining your own business or putting in the hours for your employer to earn a living, we hope you might join us here at The Cottage, a respite from the current work-world, to work in community with each other and renew each other's spirits through relationship.

Join our mailing list to get an invitation when we open later this year.