I am the only member of my family who doesn’t have my own room.

Every evening after dinner, I set up my laptop on the bar outside my kitchen and unpack the messenger bag I lug back and forth from the office, organizing the folders and loose papers. A few hours later, I strike the set to get my makeshift desk ready for breakfast and the next day.

You know what it’s like to work from home: You’re not quite working and you’re not quite at home. It may be my rage for order, but, without a room of one’s own, somebody else’s homework and bills combine with yesterday’s mail, today’s paper and extra Halloween candy to take over the piles of papers. My ancient fax machine is unreliable—even if we could remember how to fix it when it jams—and, while I am toying with buying a scanner; where would I put it?

Certainly not next to the phone, which invariably rings just as I’m getting started. It’s always someone dear who would never call me in the office. But I’m working at home! Children, husband and dog all have urgent matters that require my immediate attention. The kitchen must be straightened, chocolate eaten.

Then, finally, it’s too late for calls, Everyone’s asleep, everything’s neat and I’m alone. The silence is both welcome and eerie. Truth be told, I miss the hum of other people working.

The allure of working from home is no secret: It’s close, convenient and cheap. But too often, working at home doesn’t work. It’s distracting and solitary. This is especially true if you are starting a new business, changing jobs or working freelance. You might not need, or be able to afford, a full-time office, but you might want to be around other people—to toss around ideas, compare notes or share a cup of coffee. Isn’t that why David Mamet started Writing in Restaurants?

Now you can have it both ways. This month, the Downtown Alliance is opening the Hive at 55, a place where freelancers, entrepreneurs and small-business owners—or folks thinking about starting a business or taking on freelance work—can work independently but together, a day or a month at a time. If you live, work or have business Downtown, it’s close to home, close to the subway, and close to clients, stores and restaurants.

In the New York Information Technology Center at 55 Broad Street, the Hive will be Lower Manhattan’s first co-working facility—totally wired, modern and affordable. That means shared and private work space with lots of light for more than 30 people at any one time, WiFi, conference rooms, fax, printers, copiers, coffee and bike storage. It’ll be a great place to write an article, prepare a pitch, edit a proposal or host a business meeting, workshop, class, networking event or meetup.

The Hive is about new ways of working in Lower Manhattan, and it is also a community partnership. The New York City Economic Development Corporation and Rudin Management are financial sponsors, and there will be special membership benefits from J&R Music and Computer World, Pace University and the Poulakakos Family restaurants, which plan member happy hours and on-site lunches. The pizza from Adrienne’s might be reason enough to join.

— Liz Berger is President of the Downtown Alliance. Learn more about the Hive at 55 at www.hiveat55.com or follow it on Twitter (@hiveat55) or become a fan on Facebook (hiveat55).

I have news that I know you have been waiting for! We received our building permit! I’m not kidding when I say that this piece of paper is getting framed and will be hung as our first piece of art at the Hive. It is truly beautiful! As you can imagine, following the arrival of the building permit, things have been moving full speed ahead. The demolition got done in one day – the floor got ripped up and a few walls were taken down. Look here for a few pictures of the space following the demo. Next up is the creation of sidelights in all the offices, followed by the millwork for the kitchen and electrical work for phone and data lines.

I’ve also started accepting deliveries – our photocopier was just delivered and I’m ordering our coffee maker and water filtration system next. I can’t wait for all the ordering to be done and for more things to come in the door. I’m also arranging the installation of the internet and the phones (both in the middle of on-going construction)

Sky-Packets, a Long Island based technology company, is helping support the Hive through the installation and testing of our WiFi and Ethernet connections. They’ve been great to work with and have been brainstorming with us about different ways to setup the WiFi service to meet our needs. We will even be running an 802.11g/n Wi-Fi network for high speeds which will benefit members who are streaming video, downloading and uploading large files, or if you just require a high speed internet connection.

Additionally, J&R Music and Computer World (another sponsor of the Hive), is donating some of the equipment for the Hive. I still have to coordinate the delivery of the kitchen appliances with them. It seems that every time I cross things off my to-do list, more get added on! And without a concrete opening date, I just need to have faith that all my vendors will be able to accommodate me with little to no notice. Fingers crossed!

Oh, remember the postcard I mentioned I had been working on last week? After three tries, it is finally off at the printer. Did you know that you can’t mail a postcard at a non-profit rate if you have for-profit sponsors on the card? I learned this from our mail house, only after having sent the job to the printer. You can imagine the adrenaline rush as I called to cancel my 20,000 print run!

While I remain frenzied with all the details in opening the Hive, we have posted a membership application which can be found at hiveat55.com – so take a look and send back the form if you’re interested in becoming a member of the Hive. Hopefully, I’ll see you there in a few short weeks!

I have news that I know you have been waiting for! We received our building permit! I’m not kidding when I say that this piece of paper is getting framed and will be hung as our first piece of art at the Hive. It is truly beautiful! As you can imagine, following the arrival of the building permit, things have been moving full speed ahead. The demolition got done in one day – the floor got ripped up and a few walls were taken down. Look here for a few pictures of the space following the demo. Next up is the creation of sidelights in all the offices, followed by the millwork for the kitchen and electrical work for phone and data lines.

I’ve also started accepting deliveries – our photocopier was just delivered and I’m ordering our coffee maker and water filtration system next. I can’t wait for all the ordering to be done and for more things to come in the door. I’m also arranging the installation of the internet and the phones (both in the middle of on-going construction)

Sky-Packets, a Long Island based technology company, is helping support the Hive through the installation and testing of our WiFi and Ethernet connections. They’ve been great to work with and have been brainstorming with us about different ways to setup the WiFi service to meet our needs. We will even be running an 802.11g/n Wi-Fi network for high speeds which will benefit members who are streaming video, downloading and uploading large files, or if you just require a high speed internet connection.

Additionally, J&R Music and Computer World (another sponsor of the Hive), is donating some of the equipment for the Hive. I still have to coordinate the delivery of the kitchen appliances with them. It seems that every time I cross things off my to-do list, more get added on! And without a concrete opening date, I just need to have faith that all my vendors will be able to accommodate me with little to no notice. Fingers crossed!

Oh, remember the postcard I mentioned I had been working on last week? After three tries, it is finally off at the printer. Did you know that you can’t mail a postcard at a non-profit rate if you have for-profit sponsors on the card? I learned this from our mail house, only after having sent the job to the printer. You can imagine the adrenaline rush as I called to cancel my 20,000 print run!

While I remain frenzied with all the details in opening the Hive, we have posted a membership application which can be found at hiveat55.com – so take a look and send back the form if you’re interested in becoming a member of the Hive. Hopefully, I’ll see you there in a few short weeks!

So, I have to admit, I had a totally different plan for this post. I planned on showing you photos of all the construction: How the walls had been taken down, the floor pulled up, and the plumbing put into place for the kitchen. Unfortunately, I have no such news to report. Instead, I’m waiting (and I’ve been waiting for a few days now) for the building permit to be pulled. Construction has been awaiting a single signature on our permit — and I have no control to get it done! I’ve heard of similar construction woes — I know I’m among the many — but of course it can be a little frustrating.

While I haven’t made an opening date public, I have had a potential one in mind. It may have fallen a few days behind, but I anticipate our contractor will be able to skim a few days off…I’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, contracts are being signed, and sponsors are being lined up. I may not have a phone set up yet to take phone calls and organize deliveries, but I know a slight delay will give a little bit of much-needed time to ensure that everything is just right.

Cogent will have time to come in and setup a 100 Mbps Internet connection to ensure fast download and upload times. We’ll have time to set up our phone connections for the conference room and hook up our fax machine. I’m looking into software products that might streamline some of our signup processes. I also have time to finalize copy for an announcment postcard. Plus, I can work on additional marketing and PR opportunities to spread the word.

Other exciting developments include the creation of a new membership level. For those of you who have a job and are trying to open a business on the side, the Hive will offer an evening membership for one late night a month and weekend access. We’re striving to make the Hive a place that can meet as many people’s needs as possible — if there’s a service or if you have an idea that you think we should consider, let me know!

So I’m actually looking forward to a few extra days to get everything set up just the way I want it. And I hope that next week I’ll get you some of those construction photos I’ve promised. In the meantime, you can find us on hiveat55.com or e-mail me at hiveat55@downtownny.com if you want more information, or if you have an idea you want to share!

Now that we had our space, our next step was to develop a floor-plan – unfortunately I had no idea how many desks we could fit in the space or what remodeling work we might need to have done. Thankfully we have an architect in our office who was able to play around with a variety of configurations until we found the best layout. We realized a wall was going to have to be torn down to fit the conference room/classroom, and because there was no kitchen in the space we had to start sketching our best options for a pantry. Soon, after a few drafts and a bunch of edits, our floor plan was really coming along.

Because we have an extremely tight timeline to open the space, and because we were now talking about doing a fair amount of construction work, it became key that we had an architecture firm and expediter who could help move things along. The firm, Mancini Duffy, offered us their services pro bono and would soon become our go-to advisors for all things construction and fit-out related. Like I said, I’ve never done this before – I need all the help I can get!

Working with our budget, Mancini Duffy laid out our options for the fit-out: couches, chairs, desks, flooring and even paint colors. It was so nice having someone advise me on what works together and how to achieve the aesthetic we desired – if only they could help me with my apartment too! They presented us with two distinct “looks,” one that was more cool/modern office and one more funky and bold. Funky and bold sounded about right to us and so we chose a palette of bright greens and yellows.

Another obstacle to overcome was picking and ordering the furniture in such a short amount of time. Since the Hive is opening so soon (about three weeks from today) we had to pick furniture that would be available quickly. This certainly limited our options and even our color selections. Fortunately, we found furniture dealers who were extremely accommodating and both understood our timeline and were able to work with us on this.

So, what should you expect to see when you come check out/work/attend an event at the Hive? You’ll find an awesome lounge, with comfy swivel armchairs and a cool, rust-colored couch. You’ll find a kitchen with a fridge and microwave, plus coffee and tea. Desks will be hardwired with power and will have access to Ethernet connections. There will be a copier, fax machine, and scanner networked to the wireless network. Plus, the conference room will have its own phone line to take business calls and a ceiling-mounted projector for presentations. And, the conference room tables can be removed to offer space for classes or events. Stay posted for an announcement on the variety of additional amenities that will be available for Hive members!

What’s next on the agenda? Our building permit was just issued and construction is just about to begin. That’s what I’ll talk about next week!

From the very beginning, I knew that finding the right space for the Hive was critical to its success. The space needed to be compelling – after all, freelancers and independent workers always have the option of working somewhere else. So with this in mind, we set out to find space in the Lower Manhattan market.

Initially we thought we wanted a 3,000 square foot sublet, possibly for a three-year lease, so I began to reach out to the brokerage community and set up times to see spaces. Now, I should tell you, I have no professional experience in leasing space. Having moved three times in 5 years, the only thing I know how to do is search for rental apartments across New York City on Craigslist– and I find even that stressful!

I quickly realized that telling a broker our size and timing requirements was not enough. The concept of coworking needed to be explained – we needed a space that was open so coworkers could work together, rather than in cubicles or small offices. Ideally we wanted the space to be bright and spacious, with lots of windows and high ceilings. I craved a space that had a lofty – open feeling.

As I made brokers take me all over the one square mile of Lower Manhattan, I was becoming discouraged, thinking my ideal space may just not be out there. But then, I was taken to see a space on the 13th floor of 55 Broad. The space was empty, ready for immediate move-in. At over 4,500 square feet, the space was larger than what we were looking for. It was open with windows lining one entire wall and even had an exposed ceiling! The second I walked in, I knew this was it. This had to be the Hive’s home.

I took several trips back to the space with colleagues to get their opinions. With each new visitor, I could tell they felt the same way I did. The Hive finally felt real, it was no longer an idea on a piece of paper, but a place where I could see coworkers working and collaborating.

Negotiations for the space moved forward quickly, and before we knew it our lease was signed and our new coworking space had become a reality. Of course there was still so much more to be done, but for that moment, at least, I took a breath.

When I was in grad school, I always tried to get out of doing work in the library – it was too quiet, too sterile, and I couldn’t even bring a snack!  Instead, I would schedule meetings at local coffee shops and do my readings in parks – basically, you could always find me traipsing around the Village trying to find WiFi access wherever I went.  Nevertheless, none of these places were very conducive for my work.  I would have to scream over espresso machines, my laptop would quickly lose power in the park or I just couldn’t see my screen with the glare casting down on my computer, and then the final straw – my favorite cafes began setting time limits for their high demand tables.  I knew there had to be a better way.

Unfortunately for me (but luckily for you!), I didn’t know there was another way to work until a few months ago.  Coworking spaces have been popping up around the world to meet this exact need.  This new(ish) concept offers flexible and affordable workspace while creating a community of workers who otherwise work in isolation, like the work-from-home freelancer, the telecommuter and the entrepreneur who has a new idea for a project – in other words, the type of people, who, like me, don’t want to work in a library (or a cubicle, for that matter)!

So when we at the Downtown Alliance starting to think about new and innovative programming we could implement to support small businesses, I stumbled upon this whole coworking thing and I was totally excited.  From this, the Hive at 55 was a born – a community where like-minded people can work, socialize, share ideas and skills and learn.

Mayor Bloomberg announced his support of the Hive at 55 coworking space by including it in his MediaNYC 2020 plan, a program of eight initiatives to strengthen the media industry.  Additionally, the New York City Economic Development Corporation has made a commitment to help support the Hive.

Following the Mayor’s announcement of the Hive, we have been moving full speed ahead to get the space up and running.  Our lease at 55 Broad St. was just signed at the beginning of this month.  55 Broad, the New York Information Technology Center, will be a huge asset to the Hive as one of the leading technology buildings in New York City with advanced technology amenities plus the benefit of being in close proximity to technology firms within the building.  The Hive is large and open and will have room for more than 30 individual coworkers plus three anchor tenants,  Plus, the Hive has room to host community events, workshops, and classes – opportunities for Hive members and the local community to share and exchange ideas, spark innovation and improve skills.

Construction on the space will begin in the next few weeks and we are aiming for an early November opening.  In the meantime, I will use this blog to chronicle all the design, construction, and nitty-gritty details involved in constructing, opening, and marketing what is an entirely new and exciting business for the Downtown Alliance!

If you can’t wait for my next blog post to hear about our progress at the Hive, follow us on Twitter (twitter/hiveat55), or become a fan on Facebook for constant updates and pictures.  And, a Web site with more information is coming soon.