Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs to Work on Broadway Arts Center

The Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation (AFHDC) and Artspace, two of the nation's leaders in artist housing, congratulated the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) at a press conference this week at the historic Los Angeles Theatre in Downtown L.A. for securing a major grant to proceed with critical pre-development work on the Broadway Arts Center, a proposed mixed-use development with a theater, art gallery, creative commercial space and affordable housing for artists in Downtown L.A.

For the past year and a half, Artspace and the AFHDC have been working with DCA, the California Institute of the Arts and Bringing Back Broadway on a feasibility scope of work to determine the viability of the project that will anchor the city's Broadway Cultural Quarter. They found a tremendous unmet need for affordable space for artists, arts organizations and creative businesses in Downtown Los Angeles. Last week Artspace and AFHDC announced formation of a formal partnership as they continue to work toward creation of the Broadway Arts Center. Their next steps include site selection and evaluation.

"Artspace is pleased to partner with The Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation on the Broadway Arts Center, our first project in Los Angeles," said Artspace President Kelley Lindquist. "We offer our congratulations to our colleagues in Los Angeles on this vital step and our commitment to making the dream of the Broadway Arts Center a reality."

"The Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation and Artspace's partnership and commitment to the Broadway Arts Center are a direct result of the vision and leadership of Mayor Villaraigosa and Councilman Huizar," said Scott Weiner, President and CEO of the AFHDC, at a press conference held Tuesday with the LA DCA. "While many challenges remain, we are confident that our partnership, together with the growing world class public-private collaboration forged by DCA Managing Director Olga Garay-English, will be successful."

On hand for the announcement were Keith McNutt, Actors Fund; Olga Garay-English, Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs; Jessica Wethington-McLean, Bringing Back Broadway and LA City Council Member José Huizar (not pictured), Scott Weiner, Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation; Teri Deaver, Artspace; Tim Halbur, Artplace; Travis Preston, California Institute of the Arts; and Aileen Adams, Office of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

In conducting a feasibility scope of work over the past 18 months, Artspace, the AFHDC and the other organizations have completed public input meetings, focus groups, comprehensive arts market surveys and an affordable housing/commercial market study. A summary and initial results of this work are available at http://creativespacela.org/. This work, funded through a grant from the NEA Mayor's Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative, found tremendous unmet need for affordable space for artists, arts organizations and creative businesses in Downtown Los Angeles. Artspace and AFHDC, with their newly formed partnership, will continue working toward the creation of the Broadway Arts Center in Los Angeles.

Artspace, with more than 30 years of experience developing affordable space for artists and arts-related organizations, and The Actors Fund, a nationwide human services organization that helps all professionals in performing arts and entertainment, bring their considerable expertise in the area of housing, along with their shared missions of serving individual artists to bear in their first joint project.

A timeline for completion of the project has not yet been finalized, but according to the development team, projects of this nature can take anywhere from three to six years.

With headquarters in Minneapolis and offices in Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York and Seattle, Artspace is America's leader in arts-driven community transformation with 30 projects in operation in 13 states. To date they have completed more than 1,000 affordable live/work units for artists and their families as well as a million square feet of non-residential space for artists, arts organizations and creative enterprises. Additional information is available at www.artspace.org.

The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that helps everyone-performers and those behind the scenes-who works in performing arts and entertainment, helping more than 12,800 people directly each year, and hundreds of thousands online. Serving professionals in film, theatre, television, music, opera, radio and dance, The Fund's programs include social services and emergency assistance, health care and insurance, housing, and employment and training services. With offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Actors Fund has-for 130 years-been a safety net for those in need, crisis or transition. The Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation (AFHDC) is a subsidiary of The Actors Fund, which develops affordable, supportive and senior housing for performing arts professionals that creates jobs, improves lives and helps transform communities. Visit www.actorsfund.org.

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