- Location: 540 President Street, Third Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11215.
- Amenities: Reception area, conference room, high-speed internet, office machines, and a kitchen/lounge area for social and professional events.
- Hours: Full-time members have access 24/7; part-time members may sign up online for work station slots, which are available from 8:00am to 8:00pm, seven days a week. The space is also available for evening and weekend meetings -- fundraisers, film screenings, board retreats, etc. -- on a case-by-case basis.
- Rates: $225 or $350/month for part-time access; $495 for full-time use; $1,500 for private office space.
- Contact Info: info@brooklyncreativeleague.com, 718-576-2104.
Located on the top floor of a renovated sweater factory on the border of Park Slope and Gowanus, Brooklyn Creative League (BCL) is a dream-come-true for area writers who've longed for their very own loft space. Erin Carney and Neil Carlson opened the space in April 2009 after realizing that working from home while raising kids wasn't the freelancer nirvana they'd envisioned. They needed a "cool, productive space to work in," where they could lead professional lives and interact with creative, interesting people -- and they figured they weren't alone. Two years later, they opened Brooklyn Creative League, a light-filled urban retreat with forty-five work stations, nine offices for small-shop companies and non-profits, a shared conference room, and a lounge area.
Writer, artist, and musician Summer Pierre chose the space after researching many other options, explaining, "I knew that I needed a space to go and be with other people because I tend to whither in isolation, but I was worried about the kind of time I could commit to an office space and the kind of rent I could consistently afford." Brooklyn Creative League fit the bill with their part-time membership, which requires only a month-to-month commitment, to accommodate the fluctuating needs of freelancers and small businesses. Pierre was also attracted to the many large windows that line the space: "I love the new and open atmosphere at BCL. It makes me want to go there and get to work."
For that bright, open atmosphere, Carney and Carlson turned to Murray L. Levi of LiRo Architects and Planners. Levi had been looking for a chance to prove that he could create an aesthetically pleasing, sustainable space on a tight budget, and he agreed to work for them pro-bono. In an effort to reduce BCL's carbon footprint, he installed high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, lights, and appliances, and used low-VOC paint and FSC-certified wood. Much of the building materials are recycled: Work stations are insulated with blue cotton batting made from recycled denim, for instance, which is not only environmentally friendly, but helps absorb sound. The materials work well with the urban space. Sometimes, as in the case of reclaimed church pews, they create warmth, and other times, as with the recycled insulation, they emphasize the industrial character of the building. However, the most important effect achieved by Levi, from a writer's point of view, is a sense of both privacy and openness.
That sense of privacy and openness go beyond the physical space. BCL provides a place to work, but also ample opportunities to meet other creative people. Carney and Carlson host regular events in the space, some focused on professional development and networking, others on socializing. Short story writer and novelist Hannah Tinti compares the atmosphere to that of an artist colony. "It's interesting to be working side by side with people who are film editors, or music producers, or non-profit environmental groups," she says. But the space's ultimate value, of course, is its effectiveness in promoting creative work. Tinti continues, "I sat down the first day and wrote nearly 2,000 words, which for me is a landslide."