Posted by Times-Herald Newspapers on 1/14/12 • Categorized as Stories

Artspace to begin search for building to house artists

By DANIEL HERATY
Times-Herald Newspapers
DEARBORN - Artists looking for a place to live and practice their craft may soon have a home in Dearborn.

During an East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority Meeting Jan. 12, board members approved a contract with Artspace Projects Inc. to convert a suitable building into a live-work space for artists in an effort to bring more tourism and exposure to the city.

The to-be-selected building will be the first Artspace location in Michigan. Artspace, a Minneapolis-based non-profit organization created to help artists find viable locations to live and work, has previously established artist communities in Seattle, Pittsburgh and Chicago.

“We think that having a community of artists in Dearborn would be complimentary to the community,” Artspace Senior Vice President of Consulting Wendy Holmes said.

The agreement continues a six-step process that began nearly two years ago and could take an additional three to five years to complete.

The first two steps, determining the preliminary feasibility of an area and an artist market survey, were finished in January 2010.

The next step is predevelopment, which involves working with the EDDDA and and their partners to determine a feasible location and project scope, which could take four to nine months at a cost of $150,000.

Artspace is to scout possible locations in the city in late January and early February.

Mayor John O’Reilly Jr., who sits on the EDDDA board, said he had interest in an arts community in Dearborn since the 1980s.

He began looking at ways to increase visitor traffic to the city since becoming mayor in 2006. A viable artist community in Dearborn, he said, could help drive tourism to The Henry Ford, which sees about 1.8 million in-state visitors.

He said many visitors to the museum or the village don’t stay in the city after leaving, and he would like to keep them shopping and spending here.

“If we had 10 percent of (the visitors) coming into the Artspace exhibit,” he said, “that would be a huge increase in potential customer base.”

O’Reilly said the city will benefit from the potential artist community.

“Dearborn’s future can’t just be tied to what it’s been in the past,” he said. “We have to evolve.”

EDDDA Executive Director Michael Bewick said $300,000 of the total estimated $750,000 cost of the contract secured by the EDDDA’s partner in the project, the Dearborn Community Fund, was provided by two $150,000 grants from the Ford Foundation and The Kresge Foundation.

Organizers have been applying for other grants to cover the remaining costs, Bewick said. An application for a grant from ArtPlace, a collaboration between federal agencies and the National Endowment for the Arts, has been applied for, however, the EDDDA was not selected to move forward in the grant process.

EDDDA Chairman John Morgan Jr. said on Dec. 20, members of Artspace looked at some of the proposed sites, which require various amenities such as high ceilings and natural light, depending on the artists’ needs.

Morgan said he is looking forward to seeing Artspace develop in the city and said the incoming artists will be viable members of the community. He said after moving into an area, artists tend to draw more people in who are interested in artistic culture.

“There’s a synergy when they move into a community,” he said. “A lot of times when they come in to a district, they start to revitalize it.”

Morgan said work on securing the remaining funding will take time because of the nation’s difficult financial situation. He said the key is making sure the proposed concept is unique enough to be funded.

“There’s so many more people going after the same amount of dollars,” he said, “And there’s only so many dollars to have.”

(Daniel Heraty can be reached at dheraty@bewickpublications.com)

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FREE TO ATTEND!!!

Join us and casually network with district merchants and residents, business partners, stakeholders and City of Dearborn officials.

It’s a great opportunity to connect with the EDDDA and learn what we do and what we can do to help support and promote our businesses and the East Dearborn downtown area.

As always, guests will enjoy tasting ‘the world in a mile’ with fabulous food from several of the diverse restaurants in the neighborhood. Beverages will also be served.

No reservations necessary, and all are welcome to attend! We look forward to seeing you there!

Download and print our Holiday flyer here!!! Go ahead and print it out too!!!

They join a resourceful and engaged Board that oversees the makeup of the EDDDA and how it works, enhancing the physical aspects of downtown, optimizing the business mix and getting out East Downtown’s message and enriching our image.

Over 300 participants saved the date and their appetites, and joined in the flavorful fun.

We teamed up with the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce to indulge participants with the unique and cultural tastes of East Downtown Dearborn with our 2nd annual Taste of Dearborn East event on September 14th, 2011 from 6-10pm, and a delectably successful event it was! 

13 restaurants participated this year in East Downtown Dearborn, as well as along Warren Avenue and in the Fairlane Town Center complex.

The cost was only $20 to experience the scrumptious flavors of cuisine ranging from Mexican, Chinese, Middle-Eastern, Italian and All American.

Registrants were lined up outside our door during the check-in process at the EDDDA office located at 13750 Michigan Avenue (right across from Dearborn City Hall) starting at 5:30 p.m. Once inside they received their wristbands and restaurant listings with maps to the various locations. They also got a “taste” of what was to come with samples from Lile’s Hame Sandwich Shop, M & M Cafe and Red Star Chinese.

Channel 7 Action News even came out to cover the event! See the story and video here!!! Special thanks to news anchor Glenda Lewis who did a splendid job capturing the essence of tastes being offered. 

Our dear friends at Dearborn Patch were also covering the event, see their delectable pictures here!!! 

We would also like to graciously thank the many volunteers who helped make the check in process run ever so smoothly!!! Thanks a million!!!

It certainly was a mouthwatering way to enjoy the delectable restaurants East Dearborn has to offer.

Participating restaurants were:

360 Lounge

Avenue Bar & Grill

Bamboozle’s Pub & Grille

Fuego Mexican Grill

Lile’s Ham Sandwich Shop (at check-in)

M & M Café (at check-in)

Milan’s Pizza

Palace Cafe

PF Chang’s China Bistro

Red Star (at check-in)

Roman Village Cucina Italiana

Shelby’s On Warren

Tria (inside The Henry)

See what was on the menu here!

What better way to please your palette with the many cultural flavors East Dearborn has to offer, all in one evening!

Also find us on Facebook, just search East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority! Don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter to keep up to date on events happening here in East Downtown Dearborn!

The Midwest Sculpture Initiative (MSI), Dearborn’s first Art in Public Places project, was initiated and funded by the Dearborn Community Fund in April 2009 when eight sculptures were placed around the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center (The Center). The resulting public interest in the project and interaction over the course of a year provided the encouragement to host a new exhibit for 2010-11, and now for 2011-12.

For the second year, the Fund was joined by the East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (EDDDA) and the West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (WDDDA) in a collaboration that helped to expand the initiative and increase the number of sculptures from 8 to 12 with placement in Dearborn’s east, west and center areas.

Residents and visitors to Dearborn are encouraged to take a sculpture “tour.” Sculpture titles and locations are:  

East Downtown Dearborn - “Winter Moon”, Michigan at Maple (City Hall Park); “Glass Totems”, Maple at Osborn (Georgetown Commons); “Pulse”, on the grounds of the new Dearborn Town Center. Check out our Facebook page for more images…make sure you “Like” us too!!!!

West Dearborn - At Michigan & Brady (3 sculptures) near the Historical Museum and at  Michigan & Military (1).

The Center - sculptures are located on the east, west and south sides.

Download the 2011 brochure here.

Participating sculptors come from Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Maryland. Sculpture subjects range from whimsical to serene, provocative to straight forward. All will be on display through May 2012, and available for purchase by contacting the Dearborn Community Fund office at 313-943-5478.

For additional information on Dearborn’s Art in Public Places project, the Dearborn Community Fund or to request a project brochure (available in mid-June), contact the Fund office at 313.943-5478.

Also see Midwest Sculpture Initiative’s website at www.msisculpture.com. You can also find them on Facebook.

The EDDDA went door to door and offered district businesses a free full-color page ad that can promote a coupon or a special. The best part? We even included layout design of the ad free of charge to our businesses to jump-start participation in this first-ever publication. We plan to continue this district marketing opportunity on an annual basis, at the least.  

1000 copies of this booklet were distributed May 7, 2011 at the Green Brain Comics “Free Comic Book Day” event, which was a smashing success as always! If you want more information on this great annual event and the MANY other events they put on go to www.greenbrain.biz for more information.

Of course there will be plenty available during our Jazz on the Ave concert series that kicks off in City Hall Park from July until the end of August, check out dates and line-up on our story on our website here. To encourage cross promotion amongst our businesses we will be distributing the book to businesses in the district.

Over 100 people visited; amongst the many attendees were district merchants and residents, business partners, stakeholders and City of Dearborn officials. It was a great opportunity for district merchants and residents to connect with the EDDDA and learn what we do and what we can do to help support and promote our businesses and the downtown area.

The EDDDA teamed up with the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce to indulge participants with the unique and cultural tastes of East Downtown Dearborn with a Taste of Dearborn East on September 15th, 2010 from 6-10pm. We were thrilled to be a part of this successful event that showcased the diverse variety of flavors that our local restaurants have to offer. 

Sixteen restaurants participated in this first inaugural Taste East event throughout East Dearborn and the Fairlane Town Center complex. 

 It was a delicious way to enjoy all the great restaurants that East Dearborn has to offer.

Participating restaurants included:

Adonis Restaurant

Alcamo’s Italian Market

Amani’s

Avenue Bar & Grill

Bravo! Cucina Italiana

Country Restaurant

Fuddruckers at Fairlane

Fuego Mexican Grill

Habib’s Cuisine (local artist Janet Kondziela painted on site as part of her Dearborn Paints Good Food project, see her website here for more info!)

Joe’s Top Dog

PF Changs China Bistro

Prestige Café

Roma Bakery (at check-in)

Roman Village Cucina Italiana

Schmoocheese Cheesecakes (at check-in)

Shelby’s On Warren

The East Dearborn Development Authority (EDDDA), in partnership with the City of Dearborn, is exploring a new and creative, approach to a potential economic development project with Artspace, the nation’s leading nonprofit real estate developer for the arts. The Artspace mission is to create, foster and preserve affordable space that serves the needs of artists and arts organizations of all disciplines. These activities contribute to the continued growth of the arts community thus enhancing the cultural and economic vitality of the surrounding community. This results in these nationwide projects being community driven.

Dearborn has a deep rooted and well established arts and cultural community with many existing cultural resources. Included in these are: the Dearborn Symphony Orchestra, Dearborn Youth Symphony, Artist Society of Dearborn, Fair Lane Music Guild, Berkowitz Gallery, Padzieski Art Gallery and Dearborn Community Arts Council. Dearborn is home to amazing attractions and destinations like The Henry Ford, the Arab American National Museum and the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center that draw thousands of visitors each year.

The arts and cultural industry is one of growth and has a direct economic impact on the community. Nonprofit arts and cultural organizations support more jobs then other fields such as accountants, lawyers, public safety officers or teachers. The arts and culture industry attracts audiences, increases tourism, spurs business development and generates revenue. The arts mean business! The arts are a business!

With its distinct and vibrant marketplace of people, food and cultures as well as the $70 million mixed use development under construction at Michigan and Schaefer, the EDDDA is well positioned to support an innovative and creative project such as the proposed Artspace.

Visit the Artspace website at www.artspace.org.to learn more about the organization and its success in other communities. The scope of this project requires a comprehensive strategy in order to move forward. Community involvement from all sectors: financial, civic, arts and culture are all part of the mix that leads to a successful project!

This is a unique opportunity to blend the oft-perceived divergent worlds of art and economic development into a powerful, unified force to achieve sustainable job creation and retention. We must focus on sustaining our community by capitalizing on assets including: the international presence of our diverse ethnic groups, a well defined arts/cultural heritage, and access to substantial economic development resources.

Feel free to contact Melissa Kania of the EDDDA with questions or comments at: 313-943-3141 or by e-mail at: mkania@ci.dearborn.mi.us.