On track to open September 2026!
May 24, 2026:
Ok ya’ll, we’re in the thick of it now!
We’re hosting a series of Community Volunteer Days where folks are invited to come scrub walls, mop floors, scrap gum (this used to be a school!), pull weeds, and lots of other Worker Bee tasks. No special skills needed. Just come ready to pitch in, get a little messy, and be part of this exciting next chapter!
Sunday, May 31, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM
New Rutabaga space at Scott’s Lane and Crawford Street
WHAT TO BRING:
Wear clothes that can get dirty.
Bathrooms are available onsite.
If you have work gloves, cleaning supplies, or a favorite tool for deep cleaning or light demo, you’re welcome to bring it. We’ll have supplies on hand too.
No RSVP needed. Just show up, bring your community spirit, and help us bring Rutabaga 2.0 to life!
And mark you calendars for additional dates:
Sat, June 12 @ 10-12pm
Sun, June 28 @ 3-5pm
Latest Updates:
May 12, 2026:
We’re in the very fancy phase of getting quotes for the bigger build-out pieces, like taking down a wall, building the kitchenette, replacing the front doors, and adding an awning over the entryway. Basically: lots of measuring, pricing, re-pricing, and saying, “wait, how much does that cost?”
We’re still waiting to hear back about small business funding, which is very stressful and very real. We’re hoping to have some answers this week. Fingers crossed, deep breaths, all of it.
We’ve also hired two community coordinators to help us make the most of all the love, support, ideas, and offers you’ve been sending our way. That means you’ll start hearing from us soon about volunteer days, specific items or skills we’re looking for, and a few chances to gather in the new space so you can see what we’re dreaming up.
Also top of mind: we’re realizing we need to start advocating for a crosswalk or 4-way stop near the new space. So we’ll keep you posted on that too, especially if there’s a petition or community push coming.
More soon. Thank you for following along and helping us bring Rutabaga 2.0 to life!
May 2, 2026:
The lease for our new space started on Friday and this is a surreal moment! All the memories of our first space before it became Rutabaga, the vision, the process, the late nights, and tough decisions… it’s all flooding back to me and can be scary. But this time is different. I’ve learned so much about what it takes to create a space that is loved and to make short-term decisions with the long-term vision in mind. And most importantly, I have you all!
April 25, 2026:
Big news: Rutabaga officially has a next home, we signed the lease! It was so special to announced it at the Earth Day Party on Saturday with some of you, our loving community!
This decision was exciting, scary, hopeful, and honestly really hard. We originally thought we were looking for something just a little bigger, but commercial spaces that work for Rutabaga are hard to find, especially if we wanted to stay in East Falls. So we’re stepping into a space that is much, much bigger.
That means more room for the toy library, play, parties, camps, classes, and all the ideas we’ve been squeezing into our current space. It also means a much bigger lift than we expected.
We’re working on small business financing and, hopefully, a Commerce Department grant. We’ll know more soon, but crowdfunding is still a really important part of making this move possible. We’ll share more about this in the coming weeks.
So Phase 2 is filled in, now on to Phase 3: Making it possible & Phase 4: Design & Plan. While we’ve been planning out the space for some time now, this is where the rubber meets the road and we need to lock in some decisions! As we move through the build-out and planning process, we’ll be sharing updates here, along with volunteer days, professional-skill needs, donation links, and a running list of things we’re looking for.
Thank you for helping us grow into Rutabaga’s next home!
April 8, 2026:
We’re currently in Phase 2: Find the Right Fit and Phase 3: Make it Possible. Right now that means reviewing a lease, digging into the budget, and working through funding options to see what it would take to make this next space real.
I’m a little awkward at the whole video-update thing, but I’m doing it anyway 😅 I’m committed to sharing the journey, and I’ll keep posting updates in IG Highlights and linking them here as they come together.