Worcester Business Journal

10 Worcester Business Journal • May 25, 2015 www.wbjournal.com Making more space for the arts in Central Mass. The goal is to create the beginning of an arts epicenter in the city, museum director Nick Capasso said. "If you bring 100 creative people to the city and have them eat, live, shop and create downtown … this could be a tip- ping point," he said, explaining that it takes the full support of the community and local government to open up these spaces. "If it becomes a civic and munic- ipal priority, then it isn't individual art- ists and entrepreneurs banging their heads against the byzantine process of development." With many housing projects under- way in Worcester, Paul Morano, the city's director of business assistance, sees such space as a "huge, untapped" source of redevelopment in the city. In the last two months, Worcester officials have been approached by developers from New York and Rhode Island that have created similar projects elsewhere. This could add another element in Worcester's efforts to redevelop the downtown area, he added. "All that resi- dential (development) is either student housing or empty nesters or housing for professionals," Morano said. "But we don't have that artist (space) planned and that is the gap … that could be a big piece for filling up buildings." The greatest indicator that Worcester needs combined living and working space for artists lies inside former mill buildings and large houses scattered throughout the city, where artists and artisans cram themselves into makeshift, illegal living quarters within "maker" spaces they rent so they can afford to ply their craft. While these spaces fly under the radar, they run afoul of the city's zoning laws, Randal Gardner, CEO and treasurer of the Worcester Artist Group, said. Gardner is concerned about these spaces around the city that don't neces- sarily meet fire code and other safety thresholds — and advocates for legal alternatives. Having one space where an artist can work and live is vital, he said, especially when you look at the econom- ics. Some of these artists — recent col- lege graduates particularly - live on as little as $1,000 a month, according to Gardner. "I'd rather have it legitimized so (that) if you are going to sleep here, let's make sure the fire department knows that there are 40 or 50 people in there and that it's not just an empty warehouse," he said. But finances are not the only reason for combined spaces. Even more sea- soned artists look for a combined living and working space that has specialized equipment or space they need. And then there's the issue of quality of life, accord- ing to Juliet Feibel, executive director of Arts Worcester. Artists with day jobs don't want to return home only to eat dinner and then head back out to a remote studio, she said. Feibel has seen many artists leave Worcester for other locales such as Lowell and Providence. Many even have jobs in Worcester, she said, but would rather commute to Central Massachusetts if it means they can live where they create. "What I hear about is people leaving. People leave all the time and that indi- cates to me that there is a demand," Feibel said of working artists with steady incomes. "You're talking about respon- sible, tax-paying citizens who are also creative." A look at Lowell In the late 1990s, Lowell officials began to focus on artists' studios that double as living spaces as a potential economic driver. The city approved a zoning district that allows such spaces for artists through special permits, according to Allison Lamey, the city's economic development director. "We looked at areas in the city where we felt it would be (appropriate) to mix (residential) use but would be able to access gritty industrial uses," Lamey said. "We found that is what the artists liked and wanted," and "where we thought we would like to see the art space go." The efforts have paid off. Since the first spaces — 51 apartments — became available in 2000, that number has grown to just under 200 apartments with even more studio space. And the artists have become a financial boost for the city, said Lamey, with cultural events bringing in an extra $9 million in tour- ism revenue while improving the quali- ty of life for the one-time industrial hub. In Fitchburg, the City Council recent- ly voted to sell two properties to the CDC for the artist housing project. Before it buys them, the CDC is in the process of gauging developers' interest. While Capasso and the CDC's Marc Dohan are confident of the need for more live/work space, a CDC study now underway will also tell what kind of art- ists are looking for space and the kind of studio space to include. Worcester is undertaking a similar study that's scheduled to be completed this summer. Once the results come in — from which Erin Williams, the city's cultural development officer, expects to show a need — the city will work with local artist groups to help them formally request live/work space from developers and property owners. "We need to think not just about old mill buildings anymore, but empty super- markets, empty church buildings that are not being used by their community, but vacant buildings in all their forms," Williams said, explaining the city will deal with individual developments rather than enact large-scale zoning changes. Ultimately, communities must play to their strengths, Capasso said. Artist hous- ing and work space won't make sense for every city and town in Central Massachusetts, but in places such as Worcester and Fitchburg, which already have strong artistic communities, these spaces can be a key part of redevelopment and even draw artists from elsewhere. "I have artists on a regular basis who say 'I love living in Worcester, but I am moving to Providence where I can get live/work space,'" Feibel said. Fitchburg "is addressing a need. I think (the live/ work space) will pull from all of the Boston suburbs and … from Worcester, unless we get smarter." n >> Continued from Page 1 Two artisans collaborate on a handblown glass pumpkin at the New Street Glass Studio, part of the Worcester Center for Crafts. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y E R B P H O T O G R A P H Y Juliet Feibel, executive director of Arts Worcester, says artists who have day jobs don't want to return home to eat, then head back out to a remote studio. P H O T O / S A M B O N A C C I WORCESTER COUNTY MASSACHUSETTS 1,505 55,797 18,087 79,079 Number of arts-related businesses Number of employees in arts-related businesses In 2014, arts-related industries accounted for 4.5 percent of all businesses in Massachusetts and 2.2 percent of workers. Here's a small snapshot of arts-related businesses last year. The arts and the economy Source: Americans for the Arts

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