Amy Jean Romero moved to Pawtucket about six months ago. She said part of her reason for moving here from Framingham, Mass., was the well-developed arts district in the city.
There is a good quality of people being drawn to the city because Pawtucket is promoting its arts district and wants the artists, she said. “Art is a very important part of my life,” said Romero, owner of the Earthbound Art Studio on Exchange Court.
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Romero, like other artists in the state, considers herself a small-business owner. And during the recently completed General Assembly session, a law was passed that should help artists like her. The law formally coordinates the relationship between the art districts in Rhode Island and the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts.
The law – introduced by Sen. Jamie Doyle, D-Pawtucket, and Rep. Peter Lewiss, D-Westerly – is based on the philosophy that artists are small businesses that can bring economic growth to the state. The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts estimated that the arts provide more than $400 million to the state’s economy, said Lt. Gov. Charles J. Fogarty, who also backed the law.
“These bills will help us improve by officially expanding cooperation and assistance to cities and towns working to foster art-based communities,” Fogarty said in a July 20 news release.
Eight communities (Westerly, Woonsocket, Providence, Warren, Tiverton, Newport, Pawtucket and Warwick) have official art districts that allow for artists who live and work in the area to sell their limited-edition artwork free of sales tax. Any income made from these art sales is exempt from income tax, per 1998 legislation.
The new law is an offshoot of past legislation that will expand the duties of the State Council on the Arts to coordinate activities and encourage collaboration among the districts, said Randy Rosenbaum, executive director of the council.
The council looks to “assist local towns and cities use the tools that the General Assembly provides to (its) best advantage,” he said.
In May 2003, the New England Foundation for the Arts released the financial report for the Non-Profit Sector: 2000. The creative economy, it said, provided employment for more than 6,100 artists, earned nearly $300 million in income and welcomed nearly 5 million people to its events with 77 percent being paid admissions.
In Pawtucket, there have been 10 buildings sold over the last three years to be used as artistic venues; unused manufacturing space was converted to live/work space lofts for between 150 and 200 artists; and businesses have gone to Pawtucket because of the thriving arts district, said Herb Weiss, economic and cultural affairs officer for the city.
Pawtucket has the state’s largest arts district, Weiss said, encompassing 307 acres of historic downtown area in 22 mills on 60 streets.
The legislation is an “important step to assist arts districts throughout the state to become more effective working with artists in the community,” said Weiss.
Cities like Pawtucket and Providence that have positive track records sustaining their art districts can work together with the other districts, said Weiss.
“We can be advocates for artists by sharing our expertise,” he said.
Development of an arts district usually takes about 10 years, said Weiss. Pawtucket has been able to accomplish this cultural rebirth in just over six years, he said. The restaurants, retail shops and new hotel that emerged in the growing city helped give Pawtucket its biggest economic boost in 40 years, he said.
Sen. Doyle, of Pawtucket, said the city’s arts district has transformed the downtown area. He said Lt. Gov. Fogarty approached him about sponsoring this legislation because of the revitalization of neighborhoods and businesses in and around the arts district in Pawtucket. The influx of artists has helped the area flourish, he said.
Providence was the first city to have an arts district in 1996, according to Cliff Wood, director of the Providence Department of Art, Culture and Tourism.
The arts district has helped the city encourage, retain and attract artists to the city, he said, because they can offer the kind of buildings that artists need in which to live and work.
The original legislation was amended to include the Olneyville portion of the city in the arts district, said Wood.
Christopher McMahan, vice president and design architect with the Robinson Green Beretta Corp. in Providence and chairman of the 13-member governing body of the State Council on the Arts, said the arts districts are well-documented for improving the quality of these areas culturally and economically.
“Artists are well-known catalysts for urban renewal and change,” he said.
