Page 38 - Fall_2017

ArchDC Fall 2017.qxp_Fall 2017 8/10/17 1:06 PM Page 36

Renovated exterior of 2316 Rhode Island Avenue, NE,
now the 5 Points Small Business Resource Center.

Starting Up
Starting Up

in Woodridge
in Woodridge The building before renovation.
Courtesy of HGA Architects and Engineers

All photos © Judy Davis/Hoachlander
Davis Photography, except as noted

Abandoned Storefront Transformed

into Coworking and Community Space

by Peter James, AIA, LEED AP BD+C

In the 21st-century economy, the archetypal digital nomad—armed Project: 5 Points Small Business Resource Center,
only with a laptop and a cell phone—has the freedom to work
2316 Rhode Island Avenue, NE, Washington, DC
anywhere with a wi-fi connection: home, a coffee shop, even pool-
side. However, this liberation from the confines of the traditional Architects: HGA Architects and Engineers
office can be socially isolating, and limits the free exchange of ideas Contractor: Lofft Construction
that happens naturally in a shared workplace. To counter this
isolation, coworking environments offer freelancers and entrepre- neighborhood has a narrow focus—to support small businesses in
neurs the shared resources of a traditional office: cubicles and the emerging Rhode Island Avenue, NE, commercial corridor and
private offices, conference rooms, robust IT and A/V infrastructure, Ward 5.
and shared social spaces. The non-profit SB Works, which developed and runs the
In contrast with most coworking facilities, which operate center, envisioned 5 Points as a “local, home-grown neighborhood
under national brands and market to a wide spectrum of users, the incubator,” says John Mains, executive director. “We didn’t want to
5 Points Business Center in Northeast DC’s residential Woodridge be perceived as gentrifiers in the neighborhood.”

36 STARTING UP IN WOODRIDGE