Make your own Space

02.27.2003

Everyone knows by now that The Space, one of the best coffee shops in town, recently closed after the landlord sold the building. This is a sad time for Kalamazoo, no doubt about it. I'll miss The Space (though not the long walks in the snow to get there). I spent a lot of time there, both as a volunteer barista and as a patron. The Space did many good things: it served only organic, fair trade coffee; it provided a great place for all-ages music shows; and it had free wireless internet. But we need to keep its closing in perspective.

I know that on some level The Space was more than just a coffee shop. But it was just a physical location. The owners and volunteers are still in town. Your friends and neighbors are still here. The musicians, artists, and political activists are still working in the community. The only thing missing is the particular four walls where they so often congregated.

I hope the owners don't just throw in the towel. There's no need to resign themselves to defeat. Setbacks are common in business, especially small businesses. And let there be no illusion about that -- The Space was a business. Although it was organized as a non-profit and relied entirely on a volunteer workforce, it provided a public good in exchange for money.

I won't let my sadness over The Space's closing blind me to its inherent problems. There was reluctance to treat the enterprise as a business. A small business run by committee w/ fuzzy lines of authority will, inevitably, run into problems.

I hope the owners reopen The Space in a new location. If not them, then someone else should. One never has the right to demand a public good; one only has the right to produce it for oneself. You don't like the "scene"? Make something better. There are plenty of other rental properties available, some of them at better locations (I'd recommend something closer to campus). Portage Road is developing and offers low rents on some amazing store fronts. Sure, they might need some work, but so did The Space.

In the meantime, keep focused on the positive aspects of The Space: the people. Buildings are just buildings. I'm sure you'll see former Space baristas and patrons around town (most likely at the Fourth Coast). Say "hello" to them. Strike up a conversation. Let them know you still care about them. Unless your main devotion to The Space was the yellow walls and broken parking lot.

Either way, you can say "goodbye" to The Space this Friday and Saturday. They'll open at noon.

Posted by Miguel at 01:09 PM

Comments

You like to emphasize that The Space was a business but the point is that it was more than just that. Yes, it sold goods and services for money, but the ideals behind it and the reason for doing so made it more. Businesses are driven by profit, The Space was driven by bettering the community and filling a need that was/is there.

Posted by: Simon King at February 27, 2003 03:37 PM

Simon, I agree. The Space was more than just a business. But it was an economic enterprise. I loved The Space; I volunteered there as much as anyone else. But I have to be honest -- there were structural management problems.

The community needs that The Space provided for can only be met if they stay in business. This means they have to make a profit to generate more investment capital. And that is something some of the owners were never willing to fully acknowledge.

A business that rents its storefront should look beyond a month-by-month lease. Renal Care had been interested in the property for some time. The Space's owners saw this coming months ago. A contingency plan should have been in place, or at least further along.

I'm not trying to piss on their efforts. I want them to reopen -- and soon. But we also have to be objective. Let's do it better next time.

Posted by: Miguel at February 27, 2003 03:49 PM