Artspace project gets financial boost

HAMILTON — The Artspace Hamilton Lofts project has been granted $2.2 million in tax credits, paving the way for additional funding for the conversion of the Hamilton Center into 42 low-income housing units for artists.

It becomes the fourth major redevelopment project downtown in the last 18 months after the Mercantile Lofts, the RiversEdge Park and Amphitheater and the Hamilton Education and Workforce Center in the former JournalNews building.

“I’m excited about the fact that we got this opportunity, that we’re on our way to another successful downtown rehab,” said Hamilton Mayor Pat Moeller. It’s especially exciting, he said, that the project has an arts focus.

“With this coming downtown along with the Fitton Center for Creative Arts, the City of Sculpture, the new space for the Options Art Academy and the Miami Valley Ballet Theater, they all make each other shine,” he said. “It’s another example of the hard work of everyone in the city to have vision meet opportunity.”

The Historic Preservation Tax Credit comes from Ohio Department of Development, which on Tuesday announced $35.8 million in credits to 18 owners planning to rehabilitate 44 historic buildings in 10 communities across the state.

“Saving Ohio’s historic structures improves our communities and puts vacant buildings back into productive use, creating valuable jobs,” said Christiane Schmenk, Director of the Ohio Department of Development. The projects are expected to leverage more than $237.5 million in private investments.

According to Wendy Holmes, vice president of consulting for Artspace, a nonprofit Minneapolis-based real estate developer for the arts, the tax credit gives a boost to fundraising efforts for the $10.2 million project

“When a big source of funds such as this has been committed, it becomes a catalyst for other agencies and philanthropic organizations to come aboard,” Holmes said.

Holmes said other funds for the Artspace project should include money from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME program, philanthropies, as well as some investment from the developer.

“Most of these funds we’ll know about by the first quarter of 2013,” she said. “Work will probably start sometime next year.”

In addition to the 42 housing units, plans call for 25,000 square feet of street-level commercial space. Holmes said that Artspace will look for tenants that will be related to the arts, nonprofit groups and community gathering establishments such as coffee shops.

“No one has the space spoken for, but we have a lively arts scene there in Hamilton and a lot of groups looking for good space,” she said.

Mike Dingeldein, partner and vice president at SHP Leading Design and architect of record for the Artspace project, agreed that the tax credit is “a really big deal” in getting the project going and was a similar boost to the Historic Merchantile Lofts project, which brought 29 housing units and three businesses to the same block of High Street.

“It’s not a done deal, but this puts us in a very good position to fill the gap,” he said. “Now we’re going to have two of our most important historic buildings on High Street redeveloped as a result of this credit.”

The historic Mehrum and Lindley buildings at 222 High Street were connected in the 1920s for the Strauss Clothing Company. In the 1970’s, the buildings were renovated into the Hamilton Center and covered in a metal screen.

Artspace Hamilton Lofts will include the removal of the screen to restore the historic façade and the creation of 42 apartments and several retail storefronts.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2188 or rjones@coxohio.com.

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