MAKESH/FT: New Maker Space in Kensington Plans to Build Community from the Ground Up

Avi Forman and George Dubinksy came to Philadelphia to start a business. They didn’t start by looking for office space in Center City or checking out the growing office campus at the Navy Yard. Instead, they began their search in North Philadelphia, where low property values and an industrial legacy have left countless empty warehouses and factories for the taking.

The pair’s original plan was to start a design/build firm and to open a new location of Edgewood, Dubinsky’s home goods design company. The pair partnered with the Philadelphia-based real estate development firm Shift Capital to help them find a property.

What they found inspired a whole new vision for what the space could be.

“That vision was basically to create affordable work studios that could act as a launch pad for makers of all types,” said Brian Murray, principal at Shift Capital. 

The project eventually turned into MAKESH/FT, a mixed-use co-working space for local makers. Edgewood will still serve as the anchor tenant, but the space is now accepting applications from local makers for 300-square-foot work studios and 800 to 3,000-square-foot live/work spaces.

Shift Capital also bought the adjacent property and plans to place the live/work spaces in that building. This format is allowed due to a new zoning designation that allows a mix of residential and industrial uses.

Murray explained that both the building’s quality and the location’s wealth of assets contributed to the idea of expanding the project. The location has transit access, a committed councilwoman (Maria Quinones-Sanchez), and a home-grown maker community. The building itself (formerly the Jo-Mar Factory) is also in great shape.

A number of local businesses have already expressed their interest in using the space.

Murray noted that he has experience with this type of project. He is currently working on The Transfer Station, Manayunk’s first co-working space. Though similar in certain ways, MAKESH/FT is trying to show a commitment to community inside and outside of the space. 

“The first phase of the project is to get our financial feet underneath us, then the second phase of the project is to really focus on the community, both internal and our external footprint as well,” Murray said.

Shift Capital is already hiring local labor. It also hopes to do some robust community outreach to assure that workers are safe from crime and that nearby residents also benefit from the project. Greening, more lighting and other improvements to the built environment are a part of this strategy.

Other ideas include work training programs for people from nearby neighborhoods and possibly the construction of playground adjacent to the buildings.

“The big goal of this project is to change perceptions of Kensington,” Murray said.

Photos via Wyatt Levine