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Artspace being scaled back for tax credits

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By Richard Wilson, Staff Writer 9:20 PM Wednesday, September 14, 2011

HAMILTON — A project aimed at supporting the arts as a way to attract businesses and people to the city is being scaled back a bit.

In an effort to gain an edge on the competition for federal tax credits, costs to develop Artspace are being reduced from around $11 million to $9 million, according to Andrew Commers, project manager with Minneapolis-based Artspace U.S.A.

City Council Wednesday night voted to set aside about $436,500 of federal HOME grant dollars to go toward developing the project, which has been in the works since 2006. Planning Director Bud Scharf said those funds can be redirected at a later date if the Artspace project doesn’t pan out.

Artspace is a plan to transform the former Hamilton Center, which sits in the 200 block on the north side of High Street, into a mixed residential and commercial building for artists to live and work. The idea has worked to create economic development in 40 communities across the country, said Hamilton City Councilman Tim Naab.

“We know Artspace has a presence in Hamilton. We know the opportunity is alive and well,” he said.

The project hinges on getting approval from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency for two types of tax credits: Low-income housing and historic tax credits. OHFA did not grant the first application for those credits, suggesting that the project’s costs need to be reduced.

Commers, who is working with city officials and managing the project, said he is exploring a partnership with Ohio Capital to facilitate the tax credit application process. He said details of the project are being reviewed this week with the architects, SHP Design, in an effort to find ways to cut costs.

The plan calls for 42 low-rent residential units for artists to live and work, with the ground floor devoted to nonresidential activities, like businesses, galleries or space for other organizations.

The Hamilton Center building is still owned by Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park and Museum, an arts organization started by the previous owner of the Hamilton Center, Harry T. Wilks. Commers said Artspace has settled on a “reasonable” price to buy the property from Wilks, but the purchase transaction won’t happen until the closing of the construction contract.

The deadline to apply for the tax credits is November. If granted, renovation work could begin as early as next year and be complete by the fall of 2013, officials said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4542 or rwilson@coxohio.com.

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