by Josh Blanc
Rumors have been floating around that the Northrup King Building (NKB), 1500 Jackson St. NE was to be sold after
owner Jim Stanton of Shamrock Properties died on June 17, 2017. Stanton’s daughter Debbie Woodward has been the longtime building manager of the NKB.
On Friday, September 13 Artspace announced they have a purchase agreement with the NKB, home to over 300 artists and businesses. With fears of impending gentrification and displacement, most of the community believed that any sale was going to seriously change the dynamic of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District. I reached out to several tenants in the NKB to find out what they are thinking. Here are some of their comments.
Glass Artist Dan Mather
“We’ve known about this for at least 10 months, so it was no surprise. Glad to have it, and probably the best-case buyer (Artspace).” We’ve been assured that this will not affect the current artists’ rental wing. I’ve been heading up the NKB Marketing Cooperative for the last six months, and I’m hoping the new owners will be supporting our promotional marketing efforts (I believe they will be), and will help improve interior and exterior signage and add an additional passenger elevator. I also hope we can make a handicapped access for the south lot entrance.
I hope they develop the un/underused west building into artists’ live/work space, as well as develop the six-story section into condos. (I would buy one in a heartbeat.) We also hope to have a coffee shop/café and a wine bar added.
I think there will be a lot of changes, and all of them for the better.
The ability to have access to a variety of disciplines in the building (is important). I’ve made use of welders and other metal and woodworkers for larger projects, and I’ve been called in when other artisans needed glass components for their projects.
We get good weekend and event traffic, and since running radio ads we’ve seen better weekday traffic too. It’s also nice, as a self-employed artisan, to have an active community in the building so I never feel isolated as I did in our old space.”
Sculptor Daphne Koop
“My raw thoughts are cautiously optimistic. We of course are in a wait-and-see mode, but I think the choice of purchaser is appropriate, and so far I have not heard anything that makes me too nervous.
Changes I am hoping for are more open studio/galleries with more regular hours. I believe that in order to have a viable Arts District, we need to have more artists available and open so that if visitors come looking, they will find something to see. I think a café or coffee shop on the property would be wonderful, and provide an additional draw. I personally would love to see a NKB gallery on the main floor, run by gallery professionals that would showcase work by all of the artists in the building and that would employ professional sales staff.
As for making and selling out of NKB, I love the vibe, energy and creativity of the place, as well as the quality of the art and artists there. The building is big enough to attract people to it, and I certainly appreciate that; however, as every artist knows, that is no guarantee of sales. I make art not to sell, but because I have to, and having a studio in NKB is a wonderful luxury!”
Kolman/Pryor Gallery, Anita Sue Kolman
“I have very much enjoyed working with Debbie Woodward to promote the arts in Northeast Minneapolis generally and the NKB specifically. For that reason, I am a little sad to see a change in the NKB management. On the other hand, I am looking forward (to the change). I have every reason to believe that Artspace, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the arts, will continue to build on what has already been accomplished with NKB and even provide more opportunities for enhancing artistic activity in NKB and Northeast.
My expectations for the future of NKB is that the positive aspects will continue or even increase and that some of the few deficiencies will be addressed. At the top of my list are initiatives to increase the number of people visiting NKB, especially likely buyers. Enhancing events such as Art Attack and Northrup King Nights and Art-A-Whirl® would be great.
Adding more events to encourage potential customers would be even better. Of course, I would also like to see improvements in the some areas, such as resurfacing the parking lot, which will make the building more welcoming.
I have been asked at various times to consider a stand-alone location for my art gallery rather than NKB. The overwhelming advantage of NKB is that the size of the facility stimulates raffic and encourages relationships with other members of the artistic community. While isolation might suit other galleries, I prefer the activity level of 1500 Jackson Street NE. I’m looking forward to even more activity.”
Fiber Artist Kelly Marshall
“First off, I’m very grateful that Debbie took the time and energy to find a buyer who was interested in the arts and artists. I am hoping that the rent will not increase, but who knows?
Debbie did so much to promote the artists and events. I’m sure there will be some changes: maybe the renters will have to take over more of that work. Debbie is incredible (in the ways) she has supported the artists all these years. I’m sure there were easier and more profitable routes she could have taken.
I appreciate how well she has managed the building, had a security guard here in the evenings and kept the building clean and well maintained. Her diligence and extra effort made our events successful.”