“The Junto was a club established in 1727 by Benjamin Franklin for mutual improvement.”
Sound familiar? I’m really excited about the interest in coworking that I’ve been able to generate here in Philadelphia. I’ve got a couple of agencies that are interested in sharing space with indies, and some potential dedicated-space opportunities. At the rate I’ve been getting feedback on the website I created for Independents Hall, I’m confident that after some meetup events, and maybe one or two more successful ‘Camps(if not sooner), we will have a good start to an established collective of indies here in Philadelphia.
Also exciting is the interest from one of the cities oldest running New Media organizations, PANMA. PANMA has spent the last 10 years representing the regions digital development community. I’ve spoken with a couple of their board members, and one even proposed that I think about joining the board and launching coworking with the support of PANMA.
At this point, my biggest concern isn’t getting people, it isn’t all of the administrative tasks involved with running a space (though thats pretty high on the list, I’m confident the tool being built by the guys up in NYC will help), my biggest concern is funding. I’m considering approaching Ben Franklin Technology Partners for a grant since this seems to be right up their alley. I’m of the conviction that if I can build it, they will come.
Stay tuned for more cool stuff coming out of Philadelphia.
-Alex [dangerouslyawesome (at) gmail (dot) com]
Technorati Tags: Ben Franklin, coworking, Junto, PANMA, philadelphia
