How do you spell FAILURE??? Tempe Arts District!!Another dismal failure for the Tempe Rulers to create a world class art area at the Tempe Town Toilet aka Tempe Town Lake. Of course us taxpayers paid for this dismal failure!
Tempe arts project collapses A bold plan to build an arts district in Tempe has fallen apart, forcing the city to put the project on hold and apologize to rival developers who both are bitter. The project was supposed to spur development along the largely undeveloped Salt River in west Tempe, and the stalled effort was compounded as plans for a sports facility along the river also died. The city is now restarting both efforts, but some members of the community are hesitant to lend their support again. Some local artists said they may refuse to work with the city on the renewed effort for an arts district. And developers who drew plans for a competing arts district are equally upset and said they might not work with the city again either. Both plans included space for studios, galleries, restaurants and shops, but with a focus on arts. One development company includes a longtime Tempe arts patron, while the other is a California-based company that just lost a third attempt to build something in Tempe’s downtown. The city and artists agreed the development would be unusual because it would be created quickly and in a desirable area, while most arts districts evolve slowly in rundown urban centers. The 12-acre development was seen as a perfect companion to the Tempe Center for the Arts, which will open next door to the east in 2007. Tempe has envisioned the arts district for quite a while, and about a year ago asked three artist groups — Arizona Bronze Works, Segura Publishing and Meltdown Glass — to be part of the project. The groups approached Valley developer and arts patron Gene Kadish, who drafted a set of plans. The city then sought formal bids and got two proposals: one called SoBa from Kadish’s group, MBS/Ravensale Joint Venture, and a proposal from Orange County, Calif.-based The Lab, which had been shut down twice by Tempe on previous development proposals. “We’re not happy about the way things get done there,” said Shaheen Sadeghi, CEO of The Lab. “It doesn’t leave a good taste.” The city’s development staff recommended The Lab’s plan. And the local artists who had been encouraged by the city to develop their own plan were outraged that the city would favor one that included other businesses instead of them. That triggered another difficult issue: Though Sadeghi said he would consider working with the local artists, two of them were hesitant to do so and Segura refused outright. On Thursday, the City Council rejected The Lab’s proposal and agreed to restart the process because the city didn’t get enough public input on the development. In an unusual move, several council members said the council itself was to blame for going forward without enough public involvement. “We have so little public space left,” Councilwoman Barb Carter said. “Where we’re going to develop, we need to hear from the citizens.” The council also had concerns about the specifics of each development. That also baffled both developers and the artists, who said they’d worked closely with the community. “They’ve heard from the community and the community said ‘Pick SoBa,’” said Crista Cloutier, director of Segura Publishing. “And the community also said do something now.” The artists said they wasted a lot of time and money on the rejected development plans — and some said they might not take the risk again. “These aren’t arts businesses that have the kind of capital and the time to go through this process,” said Tom Bollinger, owner of Arizona Bronze Works. The artists and developers said Tempe may have difficulty getting new proposals because the arts district is so unusual that few companies have the desire, expertise or artist lineup to support it. The council expects to figure out what to do next at a meeting in November. It also will reconsider a failed effort to get a 60,000-square-foot basketball and volleyball complex on the river’s south banks, near 52nd Street. Chris Salomone, Tempe community development manager, said the city agreed in January to lease the land to the Kentucky Basketball Academy, but the developer failed to meet several deadlines. The facility had been touted as an athletic mecca that would draw people Valleywide. The pair of plans followed a long list of other stalled proposals along the lake, including other sports facilities, a water park and a Peabody hotel. Salomone said there is plenty of opportunity to build there, despite the recent failed projects. “Because they’re unique and different, they don’t have formulas and models to follow,” Salomone said. “The ideas are good, we just have to figure out a better way to implement them,” Salomone said. Contact Garin Groff by email, or phone (480) 898-5938
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