MakeOffices Opens Co-Working Space At The Wharf, Plans New Glover Park Location
Companies have begun to move into the new MakeOffices at The Wharf, the co-working provider's largest space in the D.C. market, which overlooks the bustling, new Southwest Waterfront development.
The 44K SF co-working space is MakeOffices' eighth in the D.C. market and 14th in the U.S., with additional locations in Philadelphia and Chicago. It has another new 30K SF that will open later this month in Glover Park at 2201 Wisconsin Ave. NW.
The co-working space sits on the second and third floors of The Wharf's 800 Maine Ave. SW. It overlooks District Square, the development's open-air retail plaza. MakeOffices is celebrating its official grand opening Feb. 21, but members began trickling in after the holidays. Bisnow took a look inside the new space.
Designed by Gensler, the space is lined with aquatic tones in a nod to its location, and historic pictures of the Southwest Waterfront line some of the walls.
The space features 99 offices that fit between one and 18 people. As more established companies begin to use co-working, MakeOffices CEO Zach Wade said the company has adapted its model to include more large offices.
"We spent time looking at the unit mix," Wade said. "We found people tend to stay longer in larger offices. We took advantage of that data."
This is MakeOffices' first space with open, common areas on two separate floors. The third-floor common area features two arcade games in the corner, a Golden Tee golf game and a Pac-Man table.
The space also includes seven conference rooms, five team rooms, six audio-visual booths, 10 call rooms, a recording room, two wellness rooms and two relaxation rooms with massage chairs.
MakeOffices has committments for about 10 of those 99 offices so far, with a few more deals in the works. Wade said it has gotten strong interest from lobbying firms and government affairs offices.
In addition to the offices, the space also has 48 dedicated bullpen desks. Members from MakeOffices' other seven locations will have access to the space. Wade said MakeOffices is also working on an agreement with The Wharf's InterContinental Hotel to allow its guests to use the space in exchange for MakeOffices members receiving room discounts and access to the hotel gym.
Wade also said he expects The Wharf's office tenants to periodically take space as they flex up or down depending on the time of year. He said lobbying firm Von Scoyoc Associates is considering having its summer interns work in the MakeOffices space.
The Wharf location is MakeOffices' first new D.C. space to open since the company underwent a leadership shake-up, with Wade taking over for founder Raymond Rahbar. A legal battle between Rahbar and the company's investors, MRP and EagleBank CEO Ron Paul, recently reached a settlement, though the terms remain undisclosed.
As it works to fill this space and prepares to open in Glover Park, Wade said MakeOffices is focused on improving some of its earlier locations in Tysons, Dupont Circle and Bethesda. The company in May closed its original location in Rosslyn, which opened in 2011.
