By Judy Goddess

Tillage, a coworking space, is nearing its 11th month operating in the Inner Sunset District.

“If you live in San Francisco and are looking for a quiet place to work where you won’t be isolated, we’re for you,” Jamin Jantz said. Jamin and his wife, Mel, are the proprietors of Tillage.

“The pandemic upset our natural rhythms,” Mel said. “Suddenly, we were isolated. Everyone worked from home and socialized on Zoom. By the time it became safe for us to socialize, working from home had become a way of life.”

But the ease of working from home carries a price. The often lonely nature of remote work can take a toll on mental health, while crowded apartments, young children and noisy pets can make it difficult to focus. Coffee shops provide an option, but concentration is difficult even in the quietest cafés. And as more than one café owner pointed out, “a café full of singles, each with a cup of green tea working at their computers for four hours doesn’t help us meet the bottom line.”

The Jantzs, who live in West Portal, checked out several neighborhoods before deciding on the Sunset.

“It’s a perfect neighborhood,” Jamin said. “It’s where people go when they want to settle down in the City. It’s a neighborhood with a lot of young parents. We thought we would draw a neighborhood constituency.”

It seems as if their prediction was correct. They estimate 70% of their members live in the immediate neighborhood, and many either walk or ride their bicycles to Tillage.

After some weeks of cosmetic work (scraping the linoleum off the bathroom floors still elicits groans from Jamin), Tillage opened with all the requisite co-working amenities: a computer room with high-speed internet, a small conference area, private phone booths, a lounge for connection and conversation, and a kitchen with a coffee pot. Added amenities at Tillage include a library, new outdoor patio and a small, yet unplanted yard.

The two founders said they wanted to do more than create an attractive coworking space. Regular events or “gatherings” are designed to intentionally foster community.

Membership dues ($105-$195) include: a monthly pizza dinner provided by Wildflour Blue for members plus a guest, a monthly lunch for new members, an occasional Friday afternoon happy hour and “Fallow,” the newest gathering for “when you need a hard rest from producing, from constant connection, from the insatiable hunger for more.”

All gatherings are free to members. “Fallow” is also open to nonmembers for $10.

The Inner Sunset has recently become a hub for coworking spaces. In addition to Tillage, Third Realm and the Backstory Above, just blocks away, have developed vibrant communities of members.

The individuals who are members of these spaces work in a variety of fields – from the arts to tech.

Ian Rubinoff works in surgical robotics. Three days a week he commutes to Sunnyvale; two days a week he works at Tillage.

“Tillage is the only way I could make hybrid working work for me,” Rubinoff said. “Besides, it’s no fun to drink coffee by yourself.”

Like Rubinoff, Meghan Gorman-DaRif also commutes to the South Bay. A professor in the English Department at San Jose State University, Gorman-DaRif uses her time at Tillage to work on her book on post-colonial realism.

Wine broker Lindsay Dawicki donates wine for the monthly members meeting.

“I worked from home for five years and learned that I’ve got to be around people,” Dawicki said. “I came in for a tour in early December and became a member.”

Most of the time, Dawicki says she works in the lounge so she can talk with people. “Periodically, I reserve the conference room to meet growers. They enjoy leaving Napa and coming into the City.”

Joshua Curry is an experimental photographer and artist. His work is part of a rotating art display at Tillage. Curry recently returned to the U.S. after five years in Berlin.

“I was jobless, and I needed the discipline of work,” Curry said. “It’s important that I come here every day. That I shower, shave and get dressed.” Though Curry found a full-time job, it’s remote and he’s not ready to give up his membership in Tillage.

Eight months after opening, Tillage became financially successful. Membership continues to grow and the Jantzs believe that soon membership will be at capacity.

Tillage is located at 1410 Irving St. and is open 24/7 to members. Memberships range from $105-$195 a month. For more information, visit tillage.place.