CHICAGO—As reported in GlobeSt.com last Friday, HarborGroup International, LLC has just signed New York-basedSerendipity Labs to open and manage a 30,000-square-foot co-working lounge andconference center on the mezzanine level and secondfloor of One South Wacker, its 40-story, 1.2-million-square-foottower in the West Loop. And John Arenas, chiefexecutive officer of Serendipity, now tells GlobeSt.com that hiscompany plans to put similar spaces in other class A officebuildings, residential buildings, hotels and other spaces. “Whatwe're building is a national network that our members can accesswherever they go.”

Although co-working spaces have proliferated across the US, thisSerendipity facility “is an important first for Chicago,” Arenasadds. One South Wacker is the first class A Chicago office buildingto incorporate a full-service shared workspace and conferencecenter for its tenants and the public. Tenants know that today'semployees want, and increasingly expect, a variety of work optionsaway from the traditional office desk, and Serendipity can providethat.

“It is an extension of your own space,” Arenas says. Officeusers can host a conference with up to 100 people, or employees canmove down there for a day or more if they need to get away fromtheir own office. The facility, which will open on October 15, alsohas private offices, workstations, studios and meet-up rooms.“Having that in the building can be a real asset. The meta trend isthat companies of all sizes are changing, and instead of one deskper person, most also want to have an adjunct space.” And forlandlords, “this is an amenity that your tenants are going towant.”