From vacant to vibrant

New initiative brings life to empty storefronts

The City of Minneapolis Department of Arts & Cultural Affairs recently launched its groundbreaking Vibrant Storefronts initiative, a program designed to breathe new life into vacant spaces. The program pairs property owners with local arts organizations, creating a win-win scenario: affordable rent for art groups and stable tenants for landlords.

More than 150 artists and organizations toured eligible properties adjacent to Loring Park, and 43 applied for this year’s grants. Five organizations were winners: Black Business Enterprises, Blackbird Revolt, Flavor World, Skntones, and Twin Cities Pride.

The program offers a two-year opportunity for these five groups to strengthen their business models while engaging the public through art. By subsidizing rent in previously vacant storefronts, the initiative also helps to revitalize the Harmon Place Historic District on the west end of downtown. The initiative had a first-year budget of $224,202; the department hopes to expand into Uptown in the coming years.

Each storefront will feature quarterly programming, transforming these once-empty spaces into vibrant hubs of creativity and community engagement. 

“Turning empty storefronts into vibrant cultural hubs is a game-changer for Minneapolis,” said Mayor Jacob Frey. “This initiative equips local artists with resources to beautify our city, drive creativity, and energize our community.”

Minneapolis City Council Member Katie Cashman said the program’s inaugural location speaks to the history of the neighborhood. “We are so excited to welcome this new creative energy into Loring Park, which has been a home and venue for artists for generations.” 

“Economic and neighborhood revitalization cannot truly happen without art,” she added. “I am proud to see the city intentionally investing in these partnerships to help write the next chapters for our community.” 

This year’s awardees:

Black Business Enterprise 

Black Business Enterprise (BBE) provides local artists and business owners a platform to showcase, collaborate, and engage with the community to foster artistic talent, promote cultural equity, and elevate Minneapolis as a beacon of innovation and inclusivity.

“We used to be in the North Loop and unfortunately faced a lot of racial challenges with the residents who told us that Black people don’t belong in the North Loop, so it was a very difficult time,” said Nancy Korsah, president and CEO of BBE. “We now have a space for our members to come to, and now we can have vendor events, have artists out, and actually give them a platform to shine without having to ask for permission.”

BBE also empowers the community through financial literacy classes, business planning workshops, and credit repair programs. “We wake up every day knowing our work helps businesses thrive and families grow,” Korsah said. “That’s why we exist.”

Blackbird Revolt 

Blackbird Revolt leverages art and design as tools of change that support justice and collective liberation through anti-racism, anti-sexism, anti-ableism, and other forms of anti-oppression. The group also produces a podcast, “The Beak.” Blackbird Revolt was founded in 2016 with a simple but powerful question: “What should we wear to the next protest?”

Initially focused on activist-centered apparel, the company has grown into a platform that amplifies diverse voices and challenges exclusionary narratives. “Blackbird Revolt was founded because we felt compelled to engage our community through art and design,” said Terresa Moses, co-founder and creative director. 

“Through the company’s development, we noticed the continued lack of representation and the intentional exclusion of diverse voices from the dominant narrative. We decided to expand our initial ideas to become an alternative to that exclusion.”

Flavor World 

Flavor World empowers and inspires creatives through its products and services, including clothing, events, videos, music, and paintings. It was founded in 2018 as a clothing brand but has since grown to include many mediums of art and exists as a supportive institution for the greater Minneapolis art scene.

“There’re a few ways that I think we really benefit from this. One is being a part of the cohort and the arts cluster that they’re making,” said Drew Kinkade, founder and director of Flavor World. “Being in close proximity with these other awardees — they’re a great group of people, so I think it would be great for us to all be so close in communication.”

The rent subsidy provided through the program is another critical benefit. “It’ll free us up to get more creative and do more projects that we currently have on the back burner because we don’t have the money to fund them,” Kinkade said.

Skntones 

Skntones launched in 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd with the slogan “As you dream, we create” after co-founder and Creative Director Stephon Atuti realized there was a space for creative professionals in commercial business. Its mission is to light the way for more creative professionals and hobbyists using various mottos on their apparel packaging.

The studio and office space marks a major milestone for Skntones to drive the brand’s product development, design, content production, and community initiatives. It will also serve as a platform to host art exhibitions and galleries featuring work from local artists, with a focus on underrepresented voices.

Twin Cities Pride

Twin Cities Pride’s mission is to empower every LGBTQ+ person to live as their true self and be valued and celebrated for who they are. The program represents an opportunity to amplify often-overlooked voices and expand their reach in the community.

“[The grant] is allowing us to create the Pride Cultural Arts Center,” said Andi Otto, executive director. “We have an artist-in-residence program that allows artists and residents to join this program, be given studio space, and have their artwork uplifted. … There will be gallery space, a way for them to showcase their art because we know they are a marginalized community and don’t always get access to those things.”

Aria Binns-Zager welcomes reader responses to abinns@spokesman-recorder.com.