Ray Oldenburg explained the third place succinctly in an article for the Encyclopedia of Community (which was the first time we worked together, after years of correspondence). As you can see, he was describing places, not spaces–real life locations where social life thrives.
Third places are havens of sociability where conversation is the main activity and conviviality prevails. The atmosphere is democratic and festive, as both worldly status and personal troubles are checked at the door when a regular enters and takes his or her place amid familiar company. Third places are venues of, in the words of the sociologist Georg Simmel, “pure sociability” (Simmel 1971, 129). In most human association, Simmel noted, people come together for purposes that render enjoyment of each other’s company secondary. Sometimes, however, people gather for no other purpose than to engage in the pleasures of sociability, and in those instances it is “pure.” As every habitué of third places knows, one can often make better coffee at home or drink beer more cheaply at home; it is the enjoyment of pure sociability that draws people to these homes away from home.
The hosting establishment is usually a locally owned, independent business, the welfare of which is tied to that of the larger community. In the United States, taverns, soda fountains, bakeries with coffee counters, beauty parlors, barber shops, and cafes have been the more popular third places. Earlier, general stores, feed stores, poultry markets, gun shops, candy stores, bait shops, and livery stables also served. Not all, and perhaps not most, of these establishments were third places, as so much depends on the motivation and hosting skills of the owners. Public-sector third places are few, but they are important. In many communities, the post office and the public library have been and continue to be important meeting places.
Third places are easily identified by the fact that most of their regulars arrive at them alone but immediately join others, the whole constituting “the gang,” and it is these people who set the tone of conviviality and impart a festive atmosphere. Careful attention to them will often reveal a good deal of laughter, banter, teasing, and the use of nicknames.