Co-working spaces? (rental, house, professionals)

[ncole1]

Mass panic about the corona virus is spreading where I work and I am getting a little worried that they may try to force us to work "from home" (which means I would need to find a coworking space since my internet at home sometimes goes out for hours at a time). Are there secure, affordable places with wifi in NoVa, and can they be booked on short notice? Or do these not exist?

[luv4horses]

Co-working spaces would defeat the purpose. Tell your bosses and they’ll let you continue at their property.

[Flamingo13]

Where are you in NoVa that internet goes out for hours at a time? I agree w/the other poster, IF it comes to an issue of not wanting exposure, why would you be looking for somewhere public to have access??

[ToyVW55]

We've been told to bring our work laptops home every night to prepare for a possible building shutdown. We have two employees that do not have internet at all. I believe they will be providing them with company cell phones that have a built in hot spot.

[ncole1]

Originally Posted by luv4horses

Co-working spaces would defeat the purpose. Tell your bosses and they’ll let you continue at their property.

I don’t think you understand. The concern I have is that they will force us out of the office even when the number of cases is still so low that my chance of getting it is below 0.001% . My goal is not to avoid exposure to a near zero risk, my goal is to not get fired by people with irrational fears induced by media hype.

So my question remains which co-working spaces I can find on short notice.

[hertfordshire]

Well certainly you've done some research in the couple of days since you posted, and aren't just waiting for people to give you the information you need. So what places have you found that you're interested in? Perhaps people can share their knowledge of those locations.

[spencgr]

public library for free?

[Flamingo13]

Originally Posted by spencgr

public library for free?

Right - and aren't there lots of places: Panera, McDonald's, etc. that are the same?

[RainbowFamilyRedWhite&Blu]

Originally Posted by hertfordshire

Well certainly you've done some research in the couple of days since you posted, and aren't just waiting for people to give you the information you need. So what places have you found that you're interested in? Perhaps people can share their knowledge of those locations.

How right you are, Hertfordshire! But for everyone who's reading along, there are at least 2 WeWork locations.

There's also Regus, the grand-daddy of them all and some of you might remember when it was known as HQ Office Space. Just look in the Yellow Pages under Executive Suites and Desk Rental Spaces. Hmmm... yellow pages... it's a book... you might have to go to the library. Ask them to point you to the Reference Area.

And then there's Servcorp, the Australian based company with a gazillion locations all around the world.

There are also a number of individual mom and pop locations that rent desk space, which was the standard before WeWork came along and filled their lobbies with Foosball tables so it resembles a frat house.

I've been waiting for WeWork to take another hit in the media. Because you're right. If things get bad, no one will want to sit in a communal room with a bunch of strangers, with their damned, dirty paws all over everything. The coronavirus may be just what corporate America needs to kill this trend once and for all, and return to the days when trusted professionals were given offices of their own to achieve stellar results, instead of having to walk into a phone booth to make a few calls. Sad.

I hope this helps. Let us all know what you decide to do. I have four kids and working out of the house would require a bit of re-arranging, but maybe the best option. Save the money (not cheap!) and upgrade your internet.

[Annandale_Man]

Originally Posted by Flamingo13

Right - and aren't there lots of places: Panera, McDonald's, etc. that are the same?

Sitting around with the "unwashed masses" on an unsecured wifi hotspot is not very smart.