ArtistSpace Lofts project vision comes to life in the heart of Petersburg, Va.
PETERSBURG – The ArtistSpace Lofts, developed by 110 South Perry LLC and funded by The Cameron Foundation, is open and accepting applications.
The project came to fruition because there was already an “active community of artists” residing in Petersburg but the city lacked economical, quality spaces for them to live and work in, according to The Cameron Foundation’s President, J. Todd Graham.
“We thought this would be a good fit for Petersburg to not only serve the needs of artists who are here in the local arts community but also we’ll be attractive to other artists who live in the region who might relocate to Petersburg,” Graham said.
The Cameron Foundation was established in 2003 and works to revitalize the Tri-Cities, southern Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, Prince George, and Sussex. The private foundation has since awarded more than $101 million to numerous organizations.
The foundation’s support towards the initiative totalled about $440,000, while Community Affordable Housing Equity Corp. donated $20 million and Petersburg Housing Authority contributed almost $30 million in tax exempt bonds toward the project.
This apartment project and the study of affordable artist live-work spaces began about eight years ago. The design stemmed from the Artspace Project Inc. with input from CultureWorks and other artist work groups.
Graham said the idea of the complex is to allow artists to not “have to lease a unit to live in and then lease additional space or studio space to work in.”
The apartment complex, located at 120 Perry St., offers 1-2 bedrooms which includes additional space to accommodate an artist’s need for room to design and create. There are 226 units in the building and 50 units are designated for residents in the arts and other creative fields. The facility also houses two, four-story atriums and 10 artist studios in addition to the other community amenities such as a fitness center, media room, sky lounge and more.
Applicants must complete a screening process and interview to be considered for a live-work unit. Candidates are chosen by a committee made up of local artists, creatives and community members to determine their participation and commitment to the arts and if they’re contributing to a cooperative, creative environment.
About 70 artists have already been approved and are currently residing in the apartment complex, according to Graham.
“We’re very pleased to have attracted so many artists to the project,” Graham said.
The ArtistSpace Lofts are a part of a $60 million economic development project in the former Brown and Williamson campus in downtown Petersburg which was recognized as the Project of the Year by the City of Petersburg and the Southern Virginia Regional Chamber of Commerce, according to a press release.
“It has taken tremendous collaboration with the City of Petersburg, Artspace Consulting, The Cameron Foundation, and others to realize this unique large-scale campus that brings hundreds of new residents to Petersburg,” Tom Wilkinson, 110 South Perry LLC co-developer stated in a press release.
Anna Chen is an award-winning student journalist and the news intern for The Progress-Index. Reach her at achen@gannett.com or contact her on Twitter @annasummerchen.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Affordable live-work space apartments for artists open for application
