June 3, 2010
Warehouse Real Estate is Looking Up
Tucson’s downtown warehouse district has long been a haven for the local artist community. Clustered around the railroad, these buildings are known for solid construction, large floor plans, and cheap rent. Until recently, the future many of these structures seemed uncertain, and they appeared headed for demolition. But, now the downtown links project has been redesigned and many of the buildings are being sold by the Arizona Department of Transportation.
Ron Schwabe is owner of Peach Properties, a real estate development company that specializes in existing properties. He recently purchased two historic warehouses on Toole Avenue in the historic arts district. One of the buildings is the former Zee’s Warehouse, which has been vacant for several years. He says that he’s happy to have the opportunity to invest in these buildings and he thinks the area is poised for change. Schwabe acknowledges that developing a property like this means that a certain number of artists may be priced out of the area. The cheap rents may not be around after all the work is done, but he also says that it’s important to keep the artistic community as part of the overall mix. “We’re going to have arts-related uses here… but it’s probably not going to be the painter, sculptor with 2,000 square feet, paying 200 dollars a month.”
Marvin Saver is an artist and the president of Warehouse Arts Management Organization, the non profit organization that was awarded control of several buildings within the warehouse district.
Shaver says that WAMO's mission is to cultivate and manage Tucson's Historic Warehouse Arts District into a center for production, exhibition, education, and management of the arts. He points out that this is an important part of a master plan developed by the city. “It’s a great plan, and now we’re stepping closer to getting that,” by creating these partnerships within the community.
The dream plan to have Tucson’s rich artistic community provide some of the stimulus for growth has been elusive in the past. But, if you talk to Michael Kieth, the interim CEO of the Downtown Tucson Partnership, you’ll hear that we might be reaching a tipping point. “It already has this magical vibe,” he says and points out that the plan allows for artists to be active participants and part of the economic engine of the warehouse arts district. He says he’s not too worried that the arts community could be entirely priced out of the area, and as property becomes more valuable it creates diversity around the edges.
Michael Kieth is confident about the direction that the downtown warehouse district is headed… and a person in charge of creating Partnerships, he’s also excited about the collaborative work that is taking place between private companies, government, and non-profits like WAMO.
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