We love having R Space in the Proximity Network! Located in Durango, Colorado next to the Rochester Hotel, R Space is a community-driven coworking space that features flex desks, meeting rooms, and highspeed internet. We caught up with Kirk Komick, founder of R Space to hear about their coworking space and the community they foster in downtown Durango!

When did you open your coworking space and what enticed you to do so?
We opened R Space on November 1, 2017. We evaluated the highest and best use of rental space next to our hotel, The Rochester Hotel in Durango.  We wanted to provide service to our awesome Second Avenue and to our frequent business travelers at the hotel.  R Space is a great compliment to our business, and it is a fun concept to bring to Durango!

Tell us about your space. How big is it? What kinds of amenities do you have? What sort of quirks make it special?
R Space is approximately 2,500 square feet.  We offer an abundance of space for coworking, dedicated desks (cubicles with a locking drawer and file cabinet), a variety of meeting rooms, and a classroom/training room that fits up to 25 people.  We have high-speed internet and high-speed coffee from local roaster Desert Sun, healthy snacks, and lots of candy (cinnamon bears are our mascot). We offer Rochester Bikes to cruise around town when you need fresh air, and our members love working in our beautiful Secret Garden. Wednesday’s we focus on R Space Meet-Ups for health/wellness/life-balance etc.  We invite our community members and promote to locals. We offer a Wednesday Happy Hour to guests and members.  And, we offer Yoga once a week, free to members. We are fortunate to be on Second Avenue in Durango – a great street off the beaten path – within walking distance to Main Avenue restaurants, bars, shops and more.  We have the luxury of being next door to the Rochester Hotel with additional meeting rooms, breakout space in the Secret Garden or lobby bar area, and discounted hotel rooms for Nomads and travelers.  Arrangements can be made to offer breakfast to our members at the Rochester Hotel.

What is your favorite thing about operating a coworking space?
My favorite part of operating R Space is getting to meet people from our community who work across the world in all sorts of industries.  We love to be able to support entrepreneurs and start-ups with reasonable space, which increases their chance of success. Building a community within R Space is fascinating.

What has been the most surprising/unexpected thing about operating a coworking space?
I have been impressed with our ability to offer space for multi-day retreats and to sell room blocks [in the hotel] to accommodate their needs.  I have also been pleased with being able to help companies with offsite meetings and seeing how happy they are with their productivity.

What’s your favorite story about one of your members?
A member who was a coworker for 6 months stays connected by sending photos of his new “working digs”, which include shots of bears and buffalo! He even still contacts our staff for technical assistance.

What is your biggest piece of advice for someone wanting to open a space?
Opening a space is very exciting and fulfilling.  Post opening requires a lot of follow-through, patience, and flexibility.  Creating the desired culture takes a bit of work and time. And, it is challenging to maintain a balance between selling memberships, and community donations.

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