New Lottery Offers Artists Affordable Studios In Gowanus
A new lottery in Gowanus is offering subsidized studio spaces for local artists.
The initiative comes as part of a community benefits agreement (CBA) tied to the 2021 Gowanus rezoning. Johnny Thornton, the executive director of Arts Gowanus, played a key role in shaping the CBA and now oversees the lottery.
For Thornton, an artist himself, the fight for affordable workspaces is personal.
“As an artist who has been bounced around before I landed in Gowanus, I really got into how do we advocate for affordable workspaces?” he said.
Years of negotiations and advocacy efforts were required to bring the agreement to life. Sally Davis, an attorney at Ropes & Gray who worked on the deal, said the process was complex and could come together because of Thornton’s and his team’s “relentless passion.”
“There was no clear precedent for what this agreement should look like,” she said. “One of the key elements was making sure that these rights and protections were perpetual.”
The lottery prioritizes artists who have been displaced due to rezoning, as well as those from underrepresented communities. Rents will range from $275 to $331 per month, with increases capped at 2% annually, far below the city’s market rates.
This was very important to artists like Erica Morales, who lost her workspace due to rezoning.
“I work out of my kitchen, essentially,” she said. “I’m limited in what I can produce, so residency and artist studios make a big difference in being able to keep your work up.”
The first six affordable artist studios are now open at 420 Carroll, a mixed-use building with housing and commercial space.
“It was a big lift, and I’m super excited to open the door to the first studio and actually see it come to fruition,” Thornton said.
These are the first of over 100 subsidized studios planned for Gowanus, with more to come at 11 different development sites across the neighborhood.
Jennifer Gan is from Nanjing, China, and covers Arts and Culture for City Newsroom. She has experience in broadcast reporting and obtained a dual degree in Journalism and Psychology before coming to J-school.