Venture X Denver South was featured on local news shows a few times this summer.
At the end of July 2020, Michael Patton, Owner/Operator of Venture X Denver South, appeared on KUSA-TV, 9News as part of a discussion about available office space in Denver’s Central Business District. The rise in available office space in the area is partly due to COVID-19 because some businesses have decided to go virtual but it’s not the only reason as there was already real estate available in downtown Denver before the pandemic. Oil and gas companies had a lot to do with that. Michael Patton explained that Venture X offers a flexible workspace without long-term commitments which is just what a lot of businesses are looking for – they don’t want to sign a long-term lease during uncertain times. Michael also explained that they’re catering to larger businesses now more than ever as decision-makers weigh their options and try to look ahead at where they might be in a few months or a year.
In early August, Kate Patton, Community Manager of Venture X Denver South, was featured on KDVR, Fox 31 to share her plans for creating a learning pod for her child and others as back to school discussions were taking place in homes across the country. She acknowledged that parents were looking for alternative ideas and better options than what they had in the spring when everyone just made due. As a mom, she explained that she wanted a more structured learning environment for her middle school daughter to work from on the days she is learning remotely because sitting in bed doing school work was not going to work. Kate’s idea came as she looked around her own business, Venture X Denver South. It’s a shared office space with extra rooms so her plan in early August was to turn it into a “micro school” where a few students could come together to work on their assignments with the guidance and supervision of a tutor that would enhance their online learning. This would also help parents who need to work feel more comfortable with the virtual school model. The Colorado Department of Education says that if students are enrolled in a public school, there are no education license requirements for a learning pod or a micro school. The Department of Human Services explained that there is an ongoing conversation about whether or not there is a daycare license requirement. Per Colorado’s current Child Care Licensing Act, some child care arrangements for children under 18 are exempt from licensing requirements. A person providing care for more than four children would be required to have a child care license so as of early August, Kate was still working out the details to bring her learning pod idea to life.
