Railroad Square owners: 'We can no longer be the sole stewards of Tallahassee’s Art District'

Adam and Lily Kaye, the siblings who own Tallahassee's Railroad Square, are signaling that the capital's historic and beloved art district is on the brink and desperately needs financial help after a tornado strike ravaged the arts district. 

“It has always been our hope that the city of Tallahassee, or a related government entity, would purchase at least a portion of Railroad Square, and make it a publicly run or non-profit-owned community resource,” they said in a lengthy statement.

The Kayes wrote the tornado's winds were "unforgiving" to the old metal warehouses that display what they called "the largest collection of public art in the City."

They noted that some buildings will need to be demolished while others sustained minor damage and can be repaired.

The couple reported that most of the warehouses were uninsured.

"Due to the age and condition of the buildings, as well as the high insurance rates in Florida, the expense of property insurance would not have allowed us to keep rental rates affordable for our tenants. Furthermore, many of the non-modernized 1940’s wood and tin warehouses would likely not even be insurable."

While saying their "hearts are aching for our hard-working creative entrepreneurs and artists," the Kayes maintain an entirely privately-owned art district is unprecedented.

And so the discussion about Railroad Square perhaps being under the mixed ownership of nonprofits, local municipalities, and private interests is now urgent after the 8-acre property was devastated by the May 10 tornadoes that ripped through several of the 60- to 80-year-old warehouses there.

“We have met with city officials for many years to encourage this to occur and have proposed this to two mayors. Seven years ago, we informed a group of city staff and elected officials that we could not do this on our own much longer, and their involvement was necessary to retain Tallahassee’s historic Art District."

"None of these projects ever moved forward, despite our willingness to contribute to making them happen."

Kayes attempt to collaborate with outside agencies, organizations

According to the Kayes, efforts date back as early as 2007, when the district was involved in the conceptualization of a mixed-use development to provide affordable housing and studio spaces.

From 2018 to 2022, several ventures by the Kayes were explored, with groups like the Council on Culture & Arts and various city officials, but solutions never moved forward and they only received “conceptual support.”

“The bottom line is that we can no longer be the sole stewards or owners of Tallahassee’s Art District,” the Kayes said.

Now, Rick Minor looks to get Blueprint involved

At the May 16 Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency meeting, Leon County Commissioner Rick Minor requested that Blueprint provide technical expertise to Railroad Square ownership so further options could be explored.

“I believe that without local government support, the art district will not survive,” Minor said at the meeting. “Certainly not with its current footprint. What we need as a community to do is think about options that we can pitch in to save the art district.”

Minor threw out the idea of implementing a ground lease, which would position the art district as a Blueprint 2040 project, or purchase a portion of the land, if possible. (According to Investopedia, a ground lease "indicates that improvements" such as buildings "will be owned by the property owner unless an exception is created," and that usually allows the landowner to later sell the property at a premium.)

“If we lose (that property), it's never coming back. And right now, it is the cultural centerpiece, arguably, of Tallahassee,” he said.

The nearly 30-minute discussion ended with a 11-1 vote, approving a motion by Minor to meet with the Kayes and brainstorm options for funding.

Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey cast the only dissenting vote, citing the need to expeditiously “maximize" federal resources provided for disaster relief efforts.

Dailey cautioned the board against providing financial support to the district. His reason: Local governments could be denied requests for federal disaster relief assistance if it appears the city or county could handle recovery efforts on their own.

City, county working with FEMA, readying for federal help

Currently, the city and the county are engaged with the Federal Emergency Management Agency in preliminary damage assessment, an early stage of how the government agency determines "how a disaster gets declared."

Other Blueprint IA members supported Minor’s request, including Leon County Commissioner Nick Maddox, noting that the art district is a community treasure. Even he noted, however, that helping businesses find outside funding is not something that technically has to be brought to the table for a vote.

As Railroad Square's owners and tenants wait for solutions, cleanup is ongoing and and several independent fundraisers by local businesses and residents have been initiated.

The future of the district has been a major topic of conversation as many witnessed destruction at the southside arts hub for artists, entrepreneurs and capital residents.

"We have invested significantly into modernizing some of the buildings, but at this point, our resources to continue financially supporting the entirety of the 8-acre property are depleted," the Kayes wrote, adding they hope county and city leaders "will find a way to quickly purchase at least a portion of Tallahassee’s Art District to preserve this community jewel."

Kyla A Sanford covers dining and entertainment for the Tallahassee Democrat. She can be reached at ksanford@tallahassee.com. New restaurant opening up, special deals, or events coming up? Let me know!

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Railroad Square owners ask city to buy, assist Tallahassee Arts District