Pictured: The Artscape development will feature 75 apartments for local artists, as well as arts-focused community spaces. Photo provided by Mark Vengroff.

A new development on Sarasota’s North Tamiami Trail is working to sustain the city’s creative identity. Artscape, created through a collaborative effort between One Stop Housing and the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County, will offer affordable housing specifically for local artists.

The idea for an artist community emerged through several local partnerships. Mark Vengroff, CEO and Managing Partner at One Stop Housing, was working with the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation to explore how One Stop’s affordable housing model could support Sarasota’s arts culture, when they decided to bring in the Arts Alliance to manage the artistic spaces in the development.

The result is a 75-unit residential development paired with flexible arts spaces for exhibitions, rehearsals and community gatherings. The mix of studio and one-bedroom apartments will be offered to artists who live and work in Sarasota year-round, at rents priced below the market rate. “Access to these apartments is not income restricted,” says Vengroff. “We find that artists’ incomes fluctuate frequently, so offering stability to the artist community is really important.”

“Sarasota is a destination for many who seek culture, so we need to care for the people who make this the place that it is,” adds Brian Hersh, CEO of the Arts Alliance. “The arts have a positive impact both on the local economy and on the quality of life and wellness, but we also care about the wellness of the people who are providing the arts.”

Created to be a community hub for the arts, Artscape is located near a number of cultural organizations and spots, including the Ringling Museum and the FSU Center for the Performing Arts. Looking ahead, Vengroff says that One Stop hopes to break ground on this development within the next year.

Pictured: The Artscape development will feature 75 apartments for local artists, as well as arts-focused community spaces. Photo provided by Mark Vengroff.

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