Out & About Newspaper and One-in-Teen Youth Services will both open offices in August at 617 Hart Lane, located just on the outskirts of Inglewood in East Nashville.
It will mark a significant move for Out & About Newspaper, which has previously been produced via Internet and from employee’s homes.
“We’ve grown and needed a space to hold meetings and consolidate some of our sales and operation functions,” said O&AN Managing Editor Joey Leslie. “We’re excited to be able to offer meeting space for GLBT groups and non-profits.”
Nashville’s One-in-Teen Youth Services (OIT) will move from 109 29th Avenue North. OIT meets each Wednesday from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
The move will provide additional parking for OIT as well as outdoor space that the group has not previously had. It will also save the group more than $3,600 a year.
Since 1989 OIT has provided a safe space for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth, between the ages of 14 and 21, to be themselves. Basic services are free and every OIT event is alcohol and drug-free.
“The OIT board of directors approved the move and we’re excited to be sharing this new space with O&AN,” said DeWayne Fulton, OIT board chair. “We have been renting independent meeting space since 2004, which has both advantages and disadvantages. The organization has matured and the needs of our youth have changed. We considered several options for shared space and decided that this collaboration with O&AN best served our members. We’re going to have a great meeting place and be saving OIT and its supporter’s money.”
Fulton said that because OIT would primarily be utilizing the space on Wednesday evenings, OIT would allow other community groups to use their space as meeting space as long as it did not interfere with OIT meetings.
“The space can easily host groups of 10 to 20 people,” Fulton said.
The 780 square foot building, which is zoned commercial, sits at the corner of Hart Lane and Ben Allen Road, not far from Ellington Parkway.
A third office space in the building is available for rent for $350 a month. Leslie said the space is small but perfect for a professional looking for a one-room office.
The building is currently undergoing painting and landscaping. A ribbon cutting by the Nashville GLBT Chamber of Commerce is being planned for August or September. Both groups plan on moving and being in operation at the building by August 1.