A creative third place every downtown needs

Followers of this website know that we focus on neighborhoods and districts that attract the creative class, but if there ever was an example of a single venue that does so, it’s C3 (the Creative Change Center) and there’s really nothing like it anywhere.

Surprise, it’s not in Manhattan or Austin, but in Richmond, VA, which should be encouraging to cities that aren’t Manhattan or Austin. Richmond, however, is a growing mecca of creativity itself.

What is C3? As they say, it’s a “community space and an organization of collaborators promoting creative, innovative and entrepreneurial endeavors in the region.” The center itself is a 5000 s.f. loft, the third floor of an old feed and seed warehouse, in the historic Shockoe Bottom neighborhood, a former industrial neighborhood that evolved into an “urban haven of bars, restaurants and businesses, many devoted to creative pursuits.”

It’s a creative class community center and business incubator, providing a free gathering space amid a coffeehouse atmosphere where people can share their ideas and transform them into business opportunities. It is indeed a living room for the creative community.

In the next entry, how it came to be.

About The Author

neilkt