Yard & Company is taking a new spin on short-term rentals. The firm, which specializes in activating interesting spaces to attract investment and inclusively grow communities, opened The Garage in Dayton, Kentucky, to offer on-demand, short term space when and how you need it for work, gathering, and creating.
“Think of it as Airbnb for work and events,” says Yard & Company Principal Joe Nickol.
Yard & Company is a Cincinnati-based urban growth firm that has done projects like The Garage across the country, helping to improve and develop cities and towns.
“As a significant portion of our work during the pandemic was focused on helping places smartly, safely, and quickly respond to changing needs, we began to observe the accelerating changes to how people work and gather in social spaces,” explains Nickol. “While these changes were quietly underway before the pandemic, they were catapulted into the limelight by the pandemic. And because the pandemic has had such a long duration, many of those changes have become entrenched. Through it all, a renewed focus on a dynamic, rewarding experience was essential.”
The space at The Garage was designed for flexibility and for a variety of uses. When it comes to work, the space has been rented out by a single business person for an hour all the way up to day-long Fortune 500 teams retreats and happy hours.
Over the last few months, as events have picked back up, The Garage has hosted kids birthday parties, a Cinco de Mayo party, and are currently collaborating on a comedy series.
“It regularly gets used for movie and photo shoots, family reunions or movie nights, and food truck events,” says Nickol.
The goal at The Garage is to help renters become superhosts. “At its core, our platform helps us get out of the way to make it a completely contactless and self-driven experience,” he says. “This not only makes it more affordable but allows the renter a seamless and low stress rental experience. Of course, the venue has staff that can help make your experience uniquely tailored to your skillsets and needs. All of our staff and support is available on a customizable a la carte basis so customers get exactly what they need without paying for what they do not.”
The building and the location for The Garage help it to stand out as a desirable location for events. The Garage is in a former service station and contributes to its flexibility in hosting a wide variety of events while also remaining close to the city of Cincinnati and being accessible.
Nickol says he hopes to see more amenities on the food and beverage side added to The Garage over time. “With the success of this one we’re also looking for the next location,” he says. “We believe that the pandemic has rewoven the fabric of our work, social, and home lives to such an extent that this type of facility and experience could show up in communities all throughout the region as a new type of ‘third place’ between home and work.”
You can learn more about The Garage at https://www.thegarageky.com. They’re also on Instagram.
