Consultants to look at artists' housing

Consultants with Artspace Projects, a nonprofit developer of artists’ live/work housing, will come to Sarasota next week to evaluate sites within the area.

The Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County announced that Artspace consultants will conduct a feasibility study from April 8-10, including a public meeting on Wednesday, April 9, at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee’s Selby Auditorium. The feasibility study will target potential sites in the North Trail.

During the three-day visit, the consultants are scheduled to meet with public officials, artists, real estate agents, banks and other stakeholders to evaluate how the city can facilitate the development of affordable live/work space for artists. Upon completion of the study, Artspace will either develop a housing project or provide an outline for how local stakeholders could undertake a similar effort.

The public meeting, scheduled from 7-8:30 p.m., will provide an overview of Artspace’s work and is intended to foster community support for a future project.

The city of Sarasota, the Sarasota Alliance for Historic Preservation, the Community Foundation of Sarasota County and the National Endowment for the Arts provided funding for the study, which cost $15,000.

Contact David Conway at [email protected].