• Marketplace
  • Resources
  • Business Directory
  • Events
  • Advertise
  • Brand Pulse
  • Publish a Press Release
  • Get the Newsletter
  • Contact
  • About Us
The FUTURE OF WORK® since 2003
Allwork.Space
No Result
View All Result
Subscribe
  • More
    • Columnists
      • Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
      • Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
      • Angela Howard – Culture Expert
      • Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
      • Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
    • Get the Newsletter
    • Events
    • Advertise With Us
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand PulseNew
    • Partner Portal
  • Latest News
  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Work-life
  • Career Growth
  • Tech
  • Design
  • Workforce
  • Coworking
  • CRE
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Columnists
      • Dr. Gleb Tsipursky – The Office Whisperer
      • Nirit Cohen – WorkFutures
      • Angela Howard – Culture Expert
      • Drew Jones – Design & Innovation
      • Jonathan Price – CRE & Flex Expert
    • Get the Newsletter
    • Events
    • Advertise With Us
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand PulseNew
    • Partner Portal
  • Latest News
  • Business
  • Leadership
  • Work-life
  • Career Growth
  • Tech
  • Design
  • Workforce
  • Coworking
  • CRE
  • Podcast
No Result
View All Result
Subscribe
Allwork.Space
No Result
View All Result
Advertisements
Kube Suite - TL
Home Coworking

From Cells To Startups: Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces?

Old prisons, with their unique layouts and rich history, could be repurposed into the next wave of coworking spaces as demand continues to grow.

Emma AscottbyEmma Ascott
May 15, 2025
in Coworking
Reading Time: 4 mins read
A A
From Cells To Startups Will Former Prisons Be The Next Hot Coworking Spaces

As cities reckon with space constraints and developers look to the past for solutions, a new idea is gaining traction: transforming correctional facilities into centers for community, creativity, and commerce.

  • Former prisons offer unique architectural features ideal for adaptive reuse into coworking spaces.
  • The conversion of Lorton Reformatory in Virginia highlights potential for turning prisons into community hubs.
  • Repurposing prisons as coworking spaces could blend history with modern work culture.

Once defined by razor wire and regulation, some former prison sites are finding second lives in surprising ways. 

As cities reckon with space constraints and developers look to the past for solutions, a new idea is gaining traction: transforming correctional facilities into centers for community, creativity, and commerce.

Advertisements
Disaster Avoidance Experts

The reuse of buildings with complicated histories is nothing new. Old hotels now host digital nomads and remote workers. Mid-century office towers have become vertical neighborhoods. Some companies struggling to revitalize empty commercial real estate are even repurposing spaces into vertical farming.

But prison conversions introduce a distinct kind of tension between restriction and reinvention that’s beginning to appeal to a generation rethinking what “workspace” really means.

Advertisements
Nexudus - Tech Stack Lovers

Lessons From Lorton

The Liberty Crest Apartments in Lorton, Virginia, offer one of the most striking examples of this approach. Originally built in 1910, the Lorton Reformatory was known not only for housing D.C. inmates, but also for its role in one of the most pivotal moments of American activism: the imprisonment and mistreatment of suffragists in 1917, a dark chapter now referred to as the “Night of Terror.”

After the prison shut down in 2001, the site (spanning more than 2,300 acres) was acquired by Fairfax County. What followed was a careful, multi-phase development. By 2017, the former penitentiary had become a thriving apartment complex with 165 units, a community pool, yoga studio, and even on-site retail, according to CNBC. 

The bones of the old prison remain visible, but the use has been fundamentally reimagined. Original brickwork, arched windows, and sprawling green fields were incorporated into the new design.

Architectural Integrity Meets Modern Demand; Can It Translate to Coworking?

Prisons, especially reform-era facilities like Lorton, were built to last. Thick walls, high ceilings, and deliberate layouts mean they’re well suited to transformation. Unlike later-era institutions designed for isolation, many early 20th-century prisons were more open, with large windows and communal courtyards. 

Advertisements
Yardi Kube automates flex and coworking operations

These attributes translate well to coworking environments that prioritize natural light, acoustic separation, and flexible common areas.

Reconfiguring such spaces for contemporary work culture certainly requires creativity. Individual cells can become focus rooms or micro-offices. Former cafeterias offer space for social interaction. Yard spaces can be redesigned as open-air event areas or quiet zones for phone calls and solo work. 

The durability and density of these structures also make them appealing from an operational standpoint, offering energy efficiency and sound insulation most modern commercial buildings struggle to match.

The Emotional Weight of Place

Designing for utility is one thing. Designing around memory and meaning is something else entirely. 

More stories for you

IWG Partners With SmartLabs To Bring Flexible, Fully Managed Labs To Global R&D Markets

IWG Partners With SmartLabs To Bring Flexible, Fully Managed Labs To Global R&D Markets

3 hours ago
Commuter Perks Go Plush As London Offices Add Sleep Suites And Saunas

Commuter Perks Go Plush As London Offices Add Sleep Suites And Saunas

3 hours ago
Flexible Workspace Demand In U.S. And Canada Up 19%

Flexible Workspace Demand In U.S. And Canada Up 19%

1 day ago
Running Out Of Space Virtual Offices Can Grow Your Coworking Revenue Without Expanding

Running Out Of Space? Virtual Offices Can Grow Your Coworking Revenue Without Expanding

2 days ago

Prisons carry emotional residue; they are places where lives were restricted, where injustice often played out. Any repurposing of such a site has to navigate this legacy without sanitizing it.

In Lorton, the design team chose not to erase the prison’s past, but to integrate reminders of it into the present as a gesture of acknowledgment. The project demonstrates that adaptive reuse doesn’t have to mean disconnection from context. Instead, it can invite new stories while honoring older ones.

This depth of narrative is something many contemporary coworking environments lack. As the market moves beyond the standard white-box model, interest is growing in spaces with soul and places that create a visceral experience.

Potential for a New Kind of Work Hub

The elements that made Liberty Crest successful as a residential project could be applied just as easily to coworking. Privacy, structure, light, and history come together in a way that’s difficult to replicate from the ground up. 

Advertisements
Maximize Flexible Space Revenue

With urban land at a premium, and demand rising for flexible, community-driven workspaces, properties like Lorton offer an unorthodox but viable path forward.

While developers may not have tested this concept at scale in the coworking sector, interest is growing in spaces that carry a story. Not every disused prison is a candidate for conversion, as location, the architectural quality, community interest, and cost of redevelopment all play a role — but the blueprint is there.

A New Frontier in Workspace Design

Repurposing a prison demands bold vision and a high level of sensitivity. But for architects, developers, and entrepreneurs looking to push the boundaries of what workspaces can be, the opportunity is undeniable.

Where others see walls and wire, some are beginning to see structure, meaning, and potential. And in a work culture increasingly defined by autonomy and intentionality, that kind of transformation may be exactly what’s needed.

Advertisements
Disaster Avoidance Experts
Advertisements
Subscribe to the Future of Work Newsletter
Tags: CoworkingCRESpace-as-a-Service
Share11Tweet7Share2
Emma Ascott

Emma Ascott

Emma Ascott is a contributing writer for Allwork.Space based in Phoenix, Arizona. She graduated from Walter Cronkite at Arizona State University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication in 2021. Emma has written about a multitude of topics, such as the future of work, politics, social justice, money, tech, government meetings, breaking news and healthcare.

Other Stories Recommended For You

IWG Partners With SmartLabs To Bring Flexible, Fully Managed Labs To Global R&D Markets
News

IWG Partners With SmartLabs To Bring Flexible, Fully Managed Labs To Global R&D Markets

byAllwork.Space News Team
3 hours ago

SmartLabs and International Workplace Group (IWG) have formed a 10-year global partnership to deliver flexible, fully managed laboratory spaces in...

Read more
Commuter Perks Go Plush As London Offices Add Sleep Suites And Saunas

Commuter Perks Go Plush As London Offices Add Sleep Suites And Saunas

3 hours ago
Flexible Workspace Demand In U.S. And Canada Up 19%

Flexible Workspace Demand In U.S. And Canada Up 19%

1 day ago
Running Out Of Space Virtual Offices Can Grow Your Coworking Revenue Without Expanding

Running Out Of Space? Virtual Offices Can Grow Your Coworking Revenue Without Expanding

2 days ago
Advertisements
Disaster Avoidance Experts

Unlock your competitive edge in tomorrow's workplace.

Join a community of forward-thinking professionals who get exclusive access to the latest news, trends, and innovations that are shaping the future of work.

©2024 Allwork.Space News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Exploring the Future Of Work® since 2003.

Advertise   Newsletters   Privacy Policy   Terms Of Use   About Us   Contact   Submit a Press Release   Brand Pulse   Podcast   Events   

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Latest News
  • Topics
    • Business
    • Leadership
    • Work-life
    • Workforce
    • Career Growth
    • Design
    • Tech
    • Coworking
    • Marketing
    • CRE
  • Podcast
  • Events
  • About Us
  • Solutions
    • Advertise | Media Kit
    • Publish a Press Release
    • Brand Pulse
Subscribe

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
-
00:00
00:00

Queue

Update Required Flash plugin
-
00:00
00:00