One succesful mode of applying coworking spaces seems to be less for heads-down focus time and more for periodic get-together time for teams. These spaces seem not very good as a full-time micro-office due to the noise issues you mention... but as a place to go whiteboard or empathize they seem quite useful. Bonus if there are nearby interesting excursion options, food courts, recreation, etc. and multiple easy-ish commute options. Part of economic development seems to be exploring options for how to dis- and re-aggregate services like this, providing more and smaller transitions across the tradeoff landscape.
Makes sense. I'm in the middle of finding a standalone office so I can do actual meetings and be productive, but it's tempting to keep the co-working space for exactly what you describe. One day here, another day there type of thing for when those things are helpful.
