Arts Fort Worth is relocating to a new home, but the future of its formerly managed community arts center in the Cultural District remains uncertain.
Fort Worth City Council authorized an agreement June 24 for Arts Fort Worth to lease about 850 square feet on the first floor of the new downtown library branch at 512 W. 4th St. The organization will move into the building June 26.
Arts Fort Worth manages the city’s public art and grant programs and serves as a resource for artists and other arts groups within the community. The city does not have an arts and culture department, so Fort Worth Public Library manages the contract between the city and Arts Fort Worth.
Council members voted in August 2024 to purchase a historic downtown building for about $6.5 million with the intent of renovating it for library use in the future. The approximately 31,500-square-foot building previously housed the Center for Transforming Lives.
Arts Fort Worth will temporarily use office space inside the building for at least a year until a more permanent location is determined and the library’s renovations are completed. The downtown library’s opening date has yet to be determined, library director Midori Clark previously told the Report.
Wesley Gentle, executive director of Arts Fort Worth, said the move to downtown is exciting since the library will serve as an emerging space for the community, but that it is bittersweet to step away from the arts center.
“The move helps us take the next step as we continue to think differently about the work we are doing,” he said. “Some exciting plans are moving.”
Arts Fort Worth previously managed the Fort Worth Community Arts Center at 1300 Gendy St. for 22 years until it announced in July 2024 that it would leave the building. The community center, which first opened in 1954, closed its doors to the public at the end of December.
The city-owned building is in need of roughly $30 million in repairs, for which Arts Fort Worth would be responsible, according to its lease agreement. Continuing operations was not financially sustainable, Gentle said in mid-2024.
City officials have explored different options for redeveloping the building, but none of the plans have moved forward.
Marilyn Marvin, property management director with Fort Worth, said in a June 24 email that the redevelopment process for the community arts center is on hold while the city searches for a new economic development director.
Robert Sturns formerly served in the role, but he left in February to serve as the next executive director of Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County.
“It is essential that both our city manager and the new director have the opportunity to fully assess the project and contribute to the next steps to ensure its long-term success,” Marvin said.
Spokespersons for the city manager’s office, Mayor Mattie Parker and council member Macy Hill, who represents the Cultural District, did not provide a comment by publication time.
Gentle said he feels confident that the city is going to “do right” by the community arts center.
“The arts center represents an important part of our cultural infrastructure and we’re going to keep encouraging and advocating with the city to not lose sight of what it means for the arts community,” he said.
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or @davidmreports.
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