After three wonderful years in our headquarters in downtown DC, we are being forced out of our space due to building renovation. The building owner informed us that we have until next Tuesday (10/31) to vacate our office and all our on-site classes so he can start construction November 1. When negotiating our lease, the management company promised us a 4-month notification in case we need to move, and our contract provides us a minimum 30-day window. We realize a less-than-10-day notice is illegal and against our verbal and written agreements, the owner also realizes this and knows that as a small non-profit we are not in a position to fight this. We are focusing our energy on finding new space and keeping an upbeat attitude in this unexpected transition.

Details for both are below:

1) Office Space: We are looking for something comparable to what we currently have: rent one office from a larger organization which might not be utilizing their entire space, with liberal use of conference rooms or classrooms on the floor (only needed after hours and on weekends), and, if possible some space volunteers or interns to set up laptops on a non-permanent basis, as needed during their volunteer hours. Metro locations by order of preference: Farragut Square (Farragut North, Farragut West), Metro Center, Chinatown, DuPont, McPherson Square, Foggy Bottom. We are open to a long-term lease.

2) Class Hosting: Our immediate classes that need to be relocated for the month of November (some classes until December 16) are:

5 classes with 16-20 students
9 classes with 21-25 students.

There is a total of 528 students affected by this construction eviction (this is only affecting classes held at 1720 I St. NW, not the 30+ other classes around the city).

Do you know of any office that has unused conference room space in the DC-area to host your class or any other class? We need space for November, but we are also looking for new partners to host classes starting in January/February.

We are meeting with all potential partners and potential space hosts this week and, if needed, next Monday and Tuesday. I am including a link to my calendar and encourage you, or your contacts, to book a meeting with me by phone or in person if you have space that could fit our needs.

Please take a moment to put the space details in our partnership form so we can follow-up with you quickly.

October 31 is right around the corner and we are counting on our amazing network of Givers like you to make a couple phone calls, send a couple emails, or talk to just a few people to help us out in this challenging time. You can also include a link to our partnerships page.

Thank you and, despite the ticking clock and the challenge we’re up against, we look forward to what the future will bring.

—
Andrew Brown