Jamaica is getting a new shared co-working space

Inside the co-working space. Rendering via the governor’s office.

By David Brand

A new shared co-working space will soon occupy a floor inside a modern Jamaica apartment complex, funded in part by the governor’s office and the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation. 

State and local leaders visited the Moda Building on Parsons Boulevard Wednesday  to break ground on the facility, which will provide space for 80 Queens business owners and freelance workers. The project is known as the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation's Downtown Jamaica Co-Working and Training Facility and received a $1.65 million grant through the state’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative.

“This co-working space will bring entrepreneurs from across New York City to Queens and provide a launching pad for our state's next generation of homegrown businesses," said Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 

State and local leaders, including State Sen. Leroy Comrie, Lieutenant Gov. Kathy Hochul, Greater Jamaica Development Corporation President and CEO Hope Knight and Councilmember I. Daneek Miller broke ground on a new co-working space in Jamaica during a ceremony Wednesday. Photo via Empire State Development.

Lieutenant Gov. Kathy Hochul attended the groundbreaking event and said that the Downtown Revitalization Initiative’s  “forward-thinking projects” will “capitalize on the area's higher education institutions, highlight culture and diversity and enhance transportation to improve quality of life for residents, workers, students, and visitors.”

The 12,000-square-foot coworking space will support 255 jobs, according to the governor’s office.

Greater Jamaica Development Corporation President and CEO Hope Knight hailed the project in a statement. 

The investment, she said, will attract “private investment, development activity and jobs in Jamaica, which has expanded the local economy and created opportunities for local residents and business.”