You are cordially invited to attend the groundbreaking ceremony of the Silver Spring Arts Campus. The event will feature local live music, commissioned “art shovels” from Silver Spring artists, and remarks from project stakeholders. Light bites and refreshments will be available and RSVPs are strongly encouraged. This event is FREE and open to the public.
Event Details
Date / Time: Tuesday, September 25, 2018
Location: 801 Sligo Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910
RSVP HERE
**Review the official groundbreaking press release below for additional information.**
For Immediate Release:
Community Driven Artspace Project Breaks Ground in Silver Spring September 25
Artspace and the East Silver Spring Citizens’ Association (ESSCA) invite the public to the September 25 groundbreaking ceremony of the Silver Spring Arts Campus. The ceremony will take place at the development site (801 Sligo Avenue) to celebrate the project’s collaborative vision, and support by community partners, along with local government, to transform the former Third District Police station and adjacent land into an arts center anchored by affordable workforce housing. The future arts campus will include 68 units of live/work housing (with 11 units allocated for U.S. veterans); 11 townhouses (4 of which will be affordable workforce townhomes); and artist work studio spaces.
The groundbreaking ceremony, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 25. The event will feature local live music, commissioned “art shovels” from Silver Spring artists, and remarks from project stakeholders. Light bites and refreshments will be available and RSVPs are strongly encouraged at http://www.artspace.org/silver-spring.
The vision to transform the now vacant Third District Police Station began in 2009 when members of ESSCA heard of long-term County plans to close the facility. Members of the Silver Spring community wanted to transform it into art studios that could be a resource for a growing and vibrant arts community. In 2010, Karen Roper, current ESSCA Chair of Zoning & Land Use, pitched the project idea to County Executive Ike Leggett and garnered his support. Roper and other members of ESSCA kept the vision alive by promoting their idea widely for four years. In 2014, Montgomery County opened the formal RFP process to develop the site and invited ESSCA to be a part of the RFP selection process. Artspace’s commitment to creating affordable space for artists and its 30-year history of working closely with local communities lead to it being selected to develop the site.
Reflecting on the process thus far, Roper is optimistic and eager for the next chapter. "This was truly a grassroots community effort,” said Roper. “Artspace’s cooperation and collaboration with the community made our dream a reality. We are very excited."
Artspace SVP of Development Heidi Zimmer says, “Artspace is thrilled to be developing a project that was born truly from grassroots efforts. The partnership between Artspace, ESSCA, and Montgomery County has been a model for successful collaboration. We are grateful to Montgomery County, the Community Development Administration of the State of Maryland’s
Department of Housing and Community Development, Bank of America, and Capital One for the financial support to make the project possible.”
Construction for the project begins this fall, with plans for completion in the Spring of 2020. Once completed the project will represent a $32million-dollar investment to spur economic development through the arts by a community lead process.
MEDIA CONTACT
Artspace Communications Director Tio Aiken: tio.aiken@artspace.orgor (612) 321-1841
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