The abandoned church on Ninth Avenue and Van Buren Street is set to become a community arts center with the goal of bringing a variety of art and performance to the downtown community.
Crescent Ballroom owner Charlie Levy purchased the historic property with his neighbor Erick Harrell, a local property manager at Proper-D Investments LLC.
The duo wants to keep the building open on many nights and host different types of art. The arts center will be utilized for not only music from around the world, but film, theater, community events, dance performances and poetry readings available to all ages, Levy said.
He said that the process is still in its first stages. The next step is meeting with the neighbors about their desires for the building. Levy said that community input will be a critical part of this center’s development.
The Arizona School for the Arts has already reached out and expressed interest in performing at the center along with some local theater companies and a dance company, Levy said.
With the idea still in its infancy, Levy predicts the arts center won’t be open for another year. He expects discussions with the city and surrounding neighborhood to go into 2017 followed by four to six months of construction.
Levy and Harrell plan to keep the building “as original as possible,” Harrell said. “I’m going to incorporate a lot of landscape, lighting, a lot more trees, a lot of green area and try and provide a lot more light … to improve walkability.”
The structure is currently two rooms: one with a stage to be used for performances, the other with potential to be a reception hall.
Harrell has had the “endangered” church on his radar for some time through his experience with property preservation. Harrell said as an investment, the location is undesirable for use as a church but may flourish as an arts center and help support the local community. Levy said he sees the arts center as a “big umbrella” that will attract many different people and bring quality art to downtown.
“In my vision someone can walk over there one or two nights a week and … enjoy the arts center and walk home,” Levy said. “That’s what’s great about any city … that you can have an experience of getting out of your house and walking, seeing a film you want to see or music you want to see and then walking back home. I think that’s super cool, and that’s one of the top priorities that we have.”
Contact the reporter at Shane.Crowe@asu.edu.
