The ArtBlock development, which will provide live/work space for artists in Boston’s South End, will include the renovation of the Bates Art Resource Center – formerly the Bates School – on Harrison Avenue.

ArtBlock, a new development that recently broke ground in the South End of Boston, is being constructed in order to provide artists with the room to be constructive. The project will include two new 5-story buildings and the renovation of the old Bates School on Harrison Avenue, resulting in 26 affordable units and 28 market-rate condominium units.

The development is the result of the city of Boston’s first-ever artist-focused Request for Proposals, meaning that ArtBlock is specifically geared toward work and live/work space for artists. But although it was the first RFP, the need for such housing has been firmly established in today’s market.

“Artists generally are not high-income individuals or households and with market-rate condo prices between $500 and $600 a foot, it’s virtually impossible for an artist who has not hit the big time to live in the city, particularly in the South End. In the absence of affordable housing stock, you really have to design programs specifically targeted at the very high need,” said Peter Roth, president of ArtBlock developer New Atlantic Development Corp.

The artist-focused RFP, which was issued by the Boston Redevelopment Authority, was heavily influenced by a survey launched by Mayor Thomas M. Menino in 2002 that polled nearly 10,000 artists to formally study their housing needs and financial status.

In the midst of a citywide housing shortage, the poll revealed that a community like ArtBlock was desperately needed in order to keep artists living and working in Boston.

“Not only will this project address the city’s overall housing goals, it will address the very specific and unique needs of the artist community. As we all know, artists play an important role in the health and vitality of our city by enlivening our neighborhoods and adding to the city’s creative capital,” Menino said at ArtBlock’s groundbreaking ceremony.

Defining ‘Artist’

In order to be eligible for condominium ownership, artists must first be certified by the BRA, and then undergo an application process. The definition of “artist,” however, is not an exclusionary or stagnant one.

“The definition of an artist is rather broad – anything from a writer to a dancer to a musician, sculptor, painter or photographer. It’s up to the BRA Review Committee to decide,” Roth said.

The completed units are not only being made available with great preference given to members of the artistic community, they are being built with their needs in mind.

“The units set aside for artists have been built with certain amenities specifically tailored for their kind of work that one would not normally provide for non-artists,” said Roth. “Spaces are trying to be kept as open and flexible as possible, with very little room definition, which is appropriate for artists who may be working with larger media. They’re being built with big windows that will let in a lot of light, specific ventilation for those working with oils or particularly volatile paints, and elevators that are larger than one would have in a market-rate condo. It’s all just to provide for the spatial needs of artists.”

The 54 live/work condominium units will be comprised of duplex townhouses and loft-style flats, some of which will be affordable artist live/work spaces designated for households earning up to 80 percent of median income. The 26 affordable units will be mixed with 28 market-rate units.

“The practical reasons for including market-rate condos is to help pay for the affordability element. We will divert profits from the market-rate units to help subsidize affordable units,” said Roth. “The mix of types of housing reflects the healthy mix you find in Boston neighborhoods. In the South End there is a strong mix of incomes and ethnicities. Mixed-income projects are positive for the area because they reflect the diversity that already exists.”

The ArtBlock project will not only provide housing for area artists. The development will also be home to two ground-floor commercial spaces for gallery, workshop and community space. Additionally, it will create new workspaces and preserve existing work areas in the old Bates School building, now the Bates Art Resource Center, a 12,000-square-foot structure.

“The [Bates School] was built before the turn of the century for elementary education. For the past 20 years it has been used for artists’ work studios – big open classrooms work well for a variety of uses,” Roth said.

The existing work-only space will not be completely renovated, but rather modernized and retrofitted.

“We’re primarily making the building accessible to the handicapped folks – redoing the elevator, building barrier-free bathroom facilities and bringing it up to code in terms of fire and life safety,” said Roth. “The building is used and will be used for exhibitions on an ongoing basis, and for the handicapped to not have access to that is not the way the artist community would like to operate. The bulk of the money in this renovation is going into accessibility upgrades.”

The two new buildings, known as ArtBlock East and ArtBlock West, will offer a 2,005-square-foot gallery space and 59 parking spaces – 31 underground spaces in East and 28 in West.

At ArtBlock’s groundbreaking, Mark Maloney, director of the BRA, noted that the affordable housing units created may actually help to strengthen Boston’s economic market.

“Soon this site will be home to a vibrant community of artists who will be able to live affordably while producing artwork that will bolster our local economy,” Maloney said.

After a bit of a slow start, the ArtBlock project is getting back on track and is slated for completion in the late summer or early fall of 2006.