By Kade Lyons
Co-working spaces are already well established throughout the nation, and now we have an option in Eastern Utah. The Business and Technical Assistance Center (BTAC), located at 375 South Carbon Ave. in Price, has been working to develop a co-working space/homework hub for the area’s residents and visitors alike. This space is being provided by Utah’s Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED).
Co-working spaces are a product of the modern era; all that is needed is a WiFi connection and a professional work space. As many people are working remotely due to recent restrictions related to COVID-19, remote work and co-working are likely to become even more prevalent in the future as both people and organizations understand the benefits and ease of working remotely.
“The location will include privacy booths, a conference room, a large meeting room space/homework hub and a networking lounge,” Michael Bryant, Manager of the BTAC, said. “The BTAC is an ideal location for our co-working space since it is centrally located in downtown Price and it already has leasable office space for local businesses.”
The privacy booths are intended to give quick and easy access to private work space for a single person. There will be storage space lockers to rent adjacent to the privacy booths. Each of these booths will contain its own power and access to WiFi with desk working space.
The conference room will be able to accommodate approximately 8-10 people and will be located near the privacy booths. The large meeting space has a room capacity of 60 occupants with an entrance fronting on Carbon Avenue and will double as a homework hub for local students to study and work together on projects. There are plans to add additional technology features such as video conferencing, projectors and desktop computers for the homework hub.
The networking lounge will be a relaxed, open environment with comfortable seating and access to WiFi, power and optional desk space. Future plans include a WiFi enabled copy machine, potential beverage and snack machines, an online payment portal, and 24-hour building access.
The BTAC’s upcoming co-working space is an excellent fit within the Silicon Slopes East network. Silicon Slopes East is a branch of Silicon Slopes, which is a Utah-based organization designed to grow Utah’s tech presence. Silicon Slopes East events will be hosted in the networking lounge or large meeting room.
Co-working in Eastern Utah is just one element of the economic shift that is taking place. Others include manufacturing expansions, aviation education through USU Eastern and fiber networking options to each home and business in the region. Eastern Utah is a great place for an active lifestyle that is also suitable to the working professional.
The technological infrastructure of the region is on par with, and even surpasses, that of much larger urban areas. Remote work is the way of the future and Eastern Utah is primed to embrace it.