SharedSpace closes Augusta office

Office co-working company SharedSpace is closing its Augusta facility effective today.

The Atlanta-based company, which operates similar co-working facilities in Dunwoody and Smyrna, acquired the 15,000-square-foot 901 Greene St. building in 2018 and opened the facility in early January 2019.

SharedSpace CEO Daniel Levison, who opened the Augusta office through a separate partnership, confirmed the closing Monday but declined to provide details on why the facility failed to meet business forecasts.

"It's been an incredibly difficult and emotional decision," Levison said. "The closing of this facility has been very emotional for the people there."

Levinson was a personal investor in the $3 million project, which offered short-term office space to budding entrepreneurs and start-up companies. The 43 spaces ranged from $15-a-day desks to $1,650-a-month suites that housed up to eight employees.

The company was drawn to Augusta by the Georgia Cyber Center just two blocks away.

SharedSpace's Augusta tenants were given notice of the closing two months ago, Levison said. He did not disclose the building's number of tenants or its occupancy rate.

Aside from doing a top-to-bottom renovation of the former Georgia Department of Corrections Augusta probation office, Levison's partnership acquired a 41-space parking lot next to the Augusta Judicial Circuit’s Public Defenders Office on Greene Street.

"This has been difficult, and costly," Levinson said.

The property will be marketed for sale or lease by Jordan Trotter Commercial Real Estate. Jordan Trotter agent Parker Dye said SharedSpace is offering the building fully furnished, making it attractive to companies seeking move-in ready office space.

Dye was unable to disclose a sales price, but said he would expect a per-square-foot lease rate in the mid-$20s.

"As far as functionality, there's not much you have to do with it – it's pretty much set up and ready to go," Dye said.

The building is wired for high-speed broadband and features a 24/7 security system with smartphone access. It has eight parking spaces behind the building in addition to the lot next to the public defenders office. After-hours spaces also are available in the adjacent Richmond County Board of Education parking deck.

SharedSpace's renovation of the building uncovered five skylights that had been blocked by a drop ceiling and unique brick walls obscured by drywall.

If leased, Dye said the building could be split into two separate spaces: the east side of the building, with its 43 office suites and five conference rooms; and the west side of the building, with its 100-plus capacity event room and kitchen space.

He said Greene Street's landscaped medians and park benches make the location attractive to tenants seeking public greenspace.

"Broad Street is at the forefront of everyone's mind (for office space), but it's a concrete jungle," Dye said. "Greene Street will give you some greenspace."