© 2024 | WUWF Public Media
11000 University Parkway
Pensacola, FL 32514
850 474-2787
NPR for Florida's Great Northwest
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Cowork Annex Coming To Downtown Pensacola

Cowork Annex

One Palafox Place in downtown Pensacola is being converted into a new shared workplace environment.

The plan is to build a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs, work-at-home professionals, startups and others to meet and mingle.

Businessman Bobby Switzer is one of a half-dozen investors in the project and its managing partner. He says they’re helping each business meet its goals in a way he says is more effective, efficient, and fun. Another name for it, he adds, is “concierge business.”

“The space takes care of whether you have a kitchen, a conference room and the printing,” said Switzer. “It has sort of a [recreation] area for letting down. It’s a phenomenon that’s happening all over the United States. I think there’s been one or two that tried to start here and didn’t take.”

Offering 10,000 sq. ft. of space, Cowork Annex will feature state-of-the-art design concepts and technology, including a 10-gigabyte-per-second Internet connection, the fastest office Internet connection in Florida. Besides the gym and rec room, there also are plans for a coffee shop.

As far as the “meet and mingle” part goes, Switzer says it’s really about collaboration, working near each other and sharing skills.

“They talk; they talk ideas, it’s very creative,” Switzer said. “You don’t have to be in the same discipline. You could have a marketer next to a tech person.”

At this point, the investors have reserved the space and begun renovations – such as knocking down walls to create the openness. Once that’s done, Switzer says they’ll call in the “community developer.”

“This person is going to develop the basic business community – all the people who are going to work in the space,” said Switzer. “We’re going to find out what they want, how big, how many desks, what type of rooms, all sorts of different amenities.”

After that, the design part of the project will begin. That and the actual remodeling are expected to take about nine months to complete.

Cowork Annex is now in the process of researching other cities in developing a pricing index. More information about the local project can be found at www.coworkannex.com.