As years and years of dust (109, to be exact) fall from the floor joists and coat our faces, heads, and shoulders, we can’t help but wonder, “What are we getting ourselves into?” We know our hard work on this basement remodel will be worth it; it already has been.

When we think about when our construction improvements on this building began, less than three years ago, it seems like such a long time, but this building has MUCH more history than ours.

Brick-by-brick, this building was built by hand in 1913; We can only imagine the painstaking effort required to create this structure. The workers and their callused hands most likely would have been focusing on getting the job done, not thinking about the possible future for this building & its tenants! A century later, a few coworking space owners would think about these builders and thank them for the building they created.

Historically, a hard-working spirit has always been in this building. Charles and Kosta (Gust) were Greek immigrant brothers who casually came through Kearney on vacation & found this city welcoming and the citizens friendly. They observed that no one had a business with homemade candy and ice cream. They saw Kearney and this building as a place of opportunity, so in 1917 they started their shop here at 2224 Central Avenue. Their candy and Ice Cream Parlor called The Emporia Candy Kitchen was opened and ran for 30 years, followed by many other long-running businesses.

What started as a handmade tile retailer, then Emporia Candy Kitchen, many restaurants, S&H Green Stamps, Copycat printing, Dusty Records, a yarn store, a vacuum store, and a dog groomer is now Nest:Space™, a premier coworking space!

Today, this building still houses hard-working individuals and businesses striving to be their best. Our Nest:Space™ community of professionals from all industries are making their unique print on this building and our city!

Please follow along as we create a juxtaposition of our historically rich building with an updated look & function. As we continue to improve our space, we’ll continue to post updates. Next up…basement remodel!

Click HERE to see Before and After photos of the Main Level
Click HERE to see 2020’s remodel progress of the Main Level

1. We’ll be installing some acoustic sound panels on the walls in the micro offices, they look like this: https://amzn.to/2IkFcmK
2. We’ll be putting spray foam at the top of the micro office walls to make sure all of the gaps have been filled between the walls and the ceiling, so that sound doesn’t bounce from room to room via the ceiling gap.