Artspace Update #1
While visiting the Artspace project earlier today I ran into Site Manager, Bryan Day (Belmont Shelter), who gave me the lowdown on some of the latest happenings. Before going into details about the aesthetic and functional advancements, he informed me that the Artspace project as a whole has been even better received than originally anticipated. Did you know that the residential art complex is 100% full? On top of that there is already a two year waiting period to get in. There has also been a great response from artists (with studios) who have expressed interest in signing up for the fist floor gallery/retail end of the development. Those first floor commercial spots are still in the process of being finished... the original terrazzo floors are being buffed out currently.
The last time that I had stepped into the giant first floor space, the walls were pealing, the exposed pipes and ductwork still looked old and industrial, the windows were dirty, and the floors were a mess. Actually, I never even realized that there were original terrazzo floors under all of the dust and the dirt. When Bryan walked me out to the main entranceway and pointed at the buffed and repaired floor (work done by De Spirt Mosaic & Marble Company on the East Side), I was amazed. The walls and the ceiling had a fresh coat of white paint, which gave the space a bright, clean, gallery-like appearance. It will be interesting to see how it gets subdivided. Bryan told me that there could be as many as seven or eight suites. He also mentioned that all of the occupants must be artist-friendly and there will be at least one business that will offer cafe provisions.
The way things are heading for Artspace, I would hope that there would be interest in an Artspace 2 down the line. I'm sure that there are a few more buildings in the area that would work well for such a project.
Artspace is located at 1219 Main Street. For commercial or studio leasing information, click here.
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Comment Options
NBJOHN
Could the Post Office pony up some cash to fix thier joint up?
Artspace did a great thing in helping another building in BFLO live, helping Artists to live and helping a dying street live.
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NBJOHN
Could the Post Office pony up some cash to fix thier joint up?
Artspace did a great thing in helping another building in BFLO live, helping Artists to live and helping a dying street live.
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STEEL
That commercial space is wonderful
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LastCall
Does anyone know how many artists reside there? If this retail space does well, It definetly seems like another project should be in the works
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sbrof
I thought the Post Office was going to move out of the building as a part of the Artspace project? Either way it could be a natural extension of this idea. Too bad the Mid-City building right across the street is gone how great would it have been to have both of those buildings as artist lofts.. but that is out city leaders, no foresight and grab ankle at the first sign of developer dollars.
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hamp
Many city leaders and residents fought against the demolition of the Mid-City building. The developer was just too strong.
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sbrof
But it was illegal to build such a facility in a transit overlay zoning district. a 20 pump gas station doors away from a subway station. The only way to get it done was through a politico sanctioned variance... All it showed was the corruption of our politicians.
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UrbanBody
David Torke may have inside/update info on potential plans for the Post Office bldg. I had heard "retail" when the P.O. lease expired. There is also the need to relocate the meth clinic between the P.O. and Artspace.
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AtwaterLouse
sbof - Seriously now, aren't the regular people in that Main St neighborhood and the tax base much better served by having the Delta Sonic decent size gas station and convenience mart and deli/pizza cafe, compared to having yet another subsidized artists loft building right across the street from the current one? Even the starving artists might think so. They need food and gasoline too.
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benfranklin
I'm all for restoration, but that Delta Sonic is clean, well maintained, busy, and convenient. I skipped the 33 today to check out Main Street. While there's still room for improvement, there's less and less dead space.
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nonono
the 'too strong developer' was benderson.
it's indeed tremendous to have this building rehabbed and occupied. was it worth the expense to tax payers? was the best value realized for the cost? is the view of perpetual halogen daylight which is Delta Sonic's Stupendous Gas-O-rama creatively inspiring?
one important point - this project benefited developers as much as artists......original cost estimates averaged over 275,000 per unit. i know a lot of artists who could house themselves comfortably with one third that amount.
if more housing is going to be provided with tax dollars, why not a project where 90K purchase or renovation capital is made available to artists to redevelop areas of the east and west side - one property at a time. what they are now paying in RENT, they could contribute to a fund in the form of affordable mortgage payments, making the project in effect perpetual, funding future similar housing redevelopment projects, not unlike what NACA currently does with mortgages.
this would create real ownership and strengthen larger segments of the city, with plenty of opportunity for synergistic cooperation with UB school of architecture, habitat for humanity and many other neighborhood not-for-profits.
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jamesbflo
nonono, i think this projects aim is to be the catalyst for what you mention.
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chris69
well idsay that this success begs for another project. May I recommend Niagara, Abbott, Genessee and/or Broadway
look we need to replicate success in each inner city neighborhood
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skarnath
LastCall - 60 residential units - 36 in the main bldg., and 24 in the 6 new bldgs in the back. 24 of the units are available for families earning up to 90% of area median income - currently $53,370 for a family of 4. One of the project goals was to trigger a significant, sustained private sector reinvestment in the surrounding neighborhood. Another was to build a project that could serve as a bridge between the east and west sides of Buffalo. The project was both difficult and expensive, but has been successful because of the excellent partnership between Artspace USA and Belmont Shelter. (also - good work by Savarino Construction, exceptional work by HHL Architects, & legal work above & beyond the call of duty by Cannon Heyman & Weiss.)
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nonono
jamesbflo, lets hope so, and more in the manner i mention. we need more projects that promote property OWNERSHIP, not apartment rental.
EMPOWER THE INDIVIDUAL...........NOT THE MACHINE.
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Hoss
"Another was to build a project that could serve as a bridge between the east and west sides of Buffalo."
This is exactly what this city needs. Start from Main Street, the core dividing line, and branch out from it once the trunk and it's roots are established. Constructing hubs in some of the outer areas would be isolating to many. Build up Main street (all of it), then watch the development spur off of it.
It's so amazing seeing some love finally be put into Main Street.
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