Coup: We're Making It Happen
Donation protected
When I started talking to my friends about coworking, people were interested, but everyone had one quick addition- there was no way that they could afford it. Most coworking spaces in our city cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars a month to be a member at. But I already rent a small building, and I kept thinking…what else could this space be? And I thought of an idea, that I am calling Coup.
Coup is a space for people who want to live in a better world, and are doing the work to get us there. There’s about 6 of us already, and we’re all doing big shit. We are dreamers, manifestors, world designers and social weavers. Coup is the space we need to do bigger, brighter things.
It’s a little space- about >700sq ft in a stand-alone building, but its a space for big change, action plans and building community. We don’t need a palace, we need a clubhouse. It’s for potlucks, talking circles, poetry readings. We are open to it all. It’s also a space for do-ers. People who are organizing, making videos and podcasts, writing or hustling in their own ways. Some of us freelance, some of us have steady gigs, but all of us want to make an impact.
During the day, Coup will function as a coworking space, with core members who have access to space for personal work and meetings. After 5pm, the space would be available for use for meetings of 5-25 people. Often in my work as an organizer, I looked desperately for a space to meet that was free. Libraries are often booked far ahead, meeting rooms in coffee shops or restaurants often have high food and beverage minimums. So meetings at Coup will be pay-what-you-can.
We don’t need to raise a lot of money. We already have a space, and it was recently completely renovated. But what we do need to buy to make the space possible will cost about $3,000 dollars. That number includes expenses like the following:
-Desks on wheels to make the space as flexible as possible
-Lockers, so that members can keep anything valuable safe and locked up
-A new couch, chairs and rug so the space is comfortable and clean.
-A screen, projector and mobile whiteboard so people have what they need for meetings.
-A keypad lock so that we don’t have to pass around keys and so that we can keep things secure.
The other $2,000 is to create a piggy bank and safety net for the space. The lease is in my name, and I want to make sure we are always in a place of sustainable finances. I am a careful steward of money from the people in community who I love. Like I said, I don’t want to make this space fancy. But I am also sick of our communities, whether they be communities of color, indigenous communities, queer or disabled communities, never being able to have anything nice. I want Coup to be a space that is a safer space, a cozy place, where we can work and gather, where our dreams feel possible.
And most importantly, we want the space to be accessible to people who need it. We want to keep the core membership small and active, made up of people who are already building together and need more space to facilitate those relationships. This means keeping the prices for membership low enough to keep the space sustainable, which is why we are asking you to help us make an initial investment in making Coup comfortable and useful.
Do we own the space?
No, I (Ashley) have rented this space for 2 years. My landlord is a pretty great, reliable dude who is open to me doing pretty much whatever I want in the space. Just in case though, most of our investments will be in furnishings and infrastructure for the space, not in the building itself. This is also because we want Coup to be able to grow.
How much will it cost to be a member?
We are currently working this out, but it's about $100-$200 a month, depending on people's personal finances and needs from the space.
How many members will you have at a time?
We don't really want to go above 8. Because of the small footprint of the space, we want to make sure that everyone has the space that they need to make things work.
Coup is a space for people who want to live in a better world, and are doing the work to get us there. There’s about 6 of us already, and we’re all doing big shit. We are dreamers, manifestors, world designers and social weavers. Coup is the space we need to do bigger, brighter things.
It’s a little space- about >700sq ft in a stand-alone building, but its a space for big change, action plans and building community. We don’t need a palace, we need a clubhouse. It’s for potlucks, talking circles, poetry readings. We are open to it all. It’s also a space for do-ers. People who are organizing, making videos and podcasts, writing or hustling in their own ways. Some of us freelance, some of us have steady gigs, but all of us want to make an impact.
During the day, Coup will function as a coworking space, with core members who have access to space for personal work and meetings. After 5pm, the space would be available for use for meetings of 5-25 people. Often in my work as an organizer, I looked desperately for a space to meet that was free. Libraries are often booked far ahead, meeting rooms in coffee shops or restaurants often have high food and beverage minimums. So meetings at Coup will be pay-what-you-can.
We don’t need to raise a lot of money. We already have a space, and it was recently completely renovated. But what we do need to buy to make the space possible will cost about $3,000 dollars. That number includes expenses like the following:
-Desks on wheels to make the space as flexible as possible
-Lockers, so that members can keep anything valuable safe and locked up
-A new couch, chairs and rug so the space is comfortable and clean.
-A screen, projector and mobile whiteboard so people have what they need for meetings.
-A keypad lock so that we don’t have to pass around keys and so that we can keep things secure.
The other $2,000 is to create a piggy bank and safety net for the space. The lease is in my name, and I want to make sure we are always in a place of sustainable finances. I am a careful steward of money from the people in community who I love. Like I said, I don’t want to make this space fancy. But I am also sick of our communities, whether they be communities of color, indigenous communities, queer or disabled communities, never being able to have anything nice. I want Coup to be a space that is a safer space, a cozy place, where we can work and gather, where our dreams feel possible.
And most importantly, we want the space to be accessible to people who need it. We want to keep the core membership small and active, made up of people who are already building together and need more space to facilitate those relationships. This means keeping the prices for membership low enough to keep the space sustainable, which is why we are asking you to help us make an initial investment in making Coup comfortable and useful.
Do we own the space?
No, I (Ashley) have rented this space for 2 years. My landlord is a pretty great, reliable dude who is open to me doing pretty much whatever I want in the space. Just in case though, most of our investments will be in furnishings and infrastructure for the space, not in the building itself. This is also because we want Coup to be able to grow.
How much will it cost to be a member?
We are currently working this out, but it's about $100-$200 a month, depending on people's personal finances and needs from the space.
How many members will you have at a time?
We don't really want to go above 8. Because of the small footprint of the space, we want to make sure that everyone has the space that they need to make things work.
Organizer
Ashley Fairbanks
Organizer
Minneapolis, MN