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Not your typical workspace

In my search for a new shop space, an interesting alternative to the typical lease/buy deal popped up. A pair of large (LARGE) warehouses on the border of Detroit’s Mexicantown/Corktown neighborhoods, planted just a couple of miles from our loft in the city, are being converted into affordable work areas for artists. The concept is intriguing, and the man behind it has a track record of success.

A couple of years back, Robert Elmes purchased a bunch of square footage in Detroit and Highland Park, Mich., in the form of a handful of old buildings. The impetus for the buy was the skyrocketing costs in Brooklyn, N.Y. Just over 20 years ago, the Galapagos Art Space opened in New York, and over the next two decades it was a major player in the revitalization of Brooklyn. Galapagos’ goal was to furnish up-and-coming artists room to do their thing at a price below market value.

As the market monster they helped create skyrocketed, and a number of the artists found their groove and moved on, this end was no longer feasible. Elmes looked for a fresh landscape to start the cycle again.

I like the thought process. Artists often are a driving force in the growth of a community, and in doing so price themselves out of actually living and working in that community. Surviving on philanthropy and government programs is an unstable life. What the Galapagos project is offering, or at least one of the things it is offering, is a piece of the pie. Buy in right now, sign your lease and set up shop, and in 10 years they will give you 20 percent of the increase in your space’s value. The idea is that this seed money, plus potentially matching funds from the aforementioned philanthropic and government sources, will afford the artist the ability to put a down payment on a building of his or her own.

This alone got my attention. Outside of Detroit, people still think you can buy a house for a dollar and old factories for a song. The reality is, Elmes bought these buildings at the right time. Real estate prices in the last year have easily gone up 50 percent—more in some cases. The year before that was a steady climb as well.

The market is actually kind of nuts; some people are trying to cash in and some people are holding out. While looking for living and workspaces, I’ve seen price typos both adding and subtracting a zero, and I would have believed either number either way. The idea that instead of throwing away money on a lease that’s going to continue to trend upward I could get in on this kind of “lease to own” deal is attractive.

A few weeks ago, the Galapagos Art Space held an open house at the Corktown location. My wife, Darla, and I walked the buildings, wide open and yet to be converted into the workspaces. Whereas, from what I could tell, the New York project opened with a bar and performance art venue, the Detroit project is looking to attract craftspeople: sculptors, blacksmiths and glass blowers, ceramicists and painters. Or per their site:

“Do you make dresses or paintings or cabinets or micro-manufacture or have a marching band music store?”

When I talked to Robert, he put forth the idea of offering certain communal tools, the equipment that is often costly and inefficient for an individual or small business. Kilns with multiple windows aligned with separate shops. Large forges that could be shared among metalworkers. Forklifts and shipping docks and filtration systems. Stuff that an individual would be hard-pressed to obtain.

He’s definitely a sharp man. Darla and I came away impressed.

Galapagos is also a proponent of sustainable, green architecture. I know, I know, those are kind of the “it” buzzwords, but here they hold weight. Plans include an accessible rooftop garden and an indoor lake, complete with islands and trees.

Again, per the website:

“The project will be LEED certified.
There will be a green roof and a rooftop café.
A gorgeous, light-gilled café on the ground floor will spill out into the courtyard of the building.
Made-in-the-building mercantile/retail will ring the courtyard.
Super amazing, fantastical Wi-Fi.
A ‘back-to-the-workforce’ daycare/kindergarten that helps artists or entrepreneurial moms and dads get back into the workforce. Endowed by the building, we’ll offer on-site, high-quality, low-cost childcare.”

Ordinarily, this would seem too good to be true. And the project is in its infancy, so there is a certain amount of “wait and see.” But given the success out East, I’m excited at the prospects and looking forward to getting in on the ground floor.

All images of the Galapagos project are courtesy of Josh Welton, Brown Dog Welding.