CityCoHo to open University City-based media lab in 2015

Max Zahniser is building a media lab for social justice organizations.

The place? The third floor of the new, 33-story luxury “evo” student apartment building at 29th and Chestnut.

The setting? Two floors and 2,800 square feet filled with a soundbooth, editing bays equipped with software, HD video and audio equipment and “simulated skies,” to boot. (That means high-resolution images of the skies to simulate natural light, which the space doesn’t get.)

He’s calling it CLEAR Nexus, after the Colorado-based nonprofit Clear that he’s partnering with and his own nonprofit, the Sustainability Nexus. Zahniser, 35, of Graduate Hospital, launched Center City eco-focused coworking space CityCoHo at the beginning of 2014. This is his next project.

A floor plan of Clear Nexus. (Courtesy of Max Zahniser)

Clear Nexus is slated to open in the first or second quarter of 2015, he said.

The idea is to provide resources to organizations doing work focused on the environment and social progress, Zahniser said. They could use the media lab to produce a Kickstarter video or use the classroom space to hold an event. He plans to offer these resources at a low cost or free.

To pay for that, the media lab will rent out the space to larger corporations. It will also have a staff that functions like a small creative agency, producing videos and other content for corporations.

Zahniser said he got a good deal on the space (not free, “but pretty close”) because the media lab would be beneficial to the building’s tenants. CityCoHo members will also likely have access to the media lab.