Creating a Great Good Place

We are aiming to create a comfortable space where everyone feels welcome and part of a community, a “third place.” The term, third place, in contrast to the first and second places of home and work, is the premise of the book, The Great Good Place. The author, Ray Oldenburg, identifies third places, or "great good places," as the public places where people can gather and interact. Third places allow people to put aside their concerns and simply enjoy the company and conversation around them. Third places “host the regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gatherings of individuals beyond the realms of home and work.” The author states that beer gardens, main streets, pubs, cafés, coffeehouses, post offices, and other third places are the heart of a community's social vitality and the foundation of a functioning democracy. They promote social equality by leveling the status of guests, provide a setting for grassroots politics, create habits of public association, and offer psychological support to individuals and communities.

While I can’t say we will do all of the above, I hope we achieve a healthy dose!


Check out the book for yourself: The Great Good Place: Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community by Ray Oldenburg