OpenStudios Lawrence brings artists into vacant downtown storefronts

Vacant storefronts in downtown Lawrence are about to become studio space, gallery space and, organizers hope, a reason for more people to walk past dark windows and step inside.

OpenStudios Lawrence will place local artists in empty commercial spaces, starting with Andante Home at 745 New Hampshire St. The first space is scheduled to open Friday, May 1, putting the project in the middle of downtown, where empty buildings are hard to miss for shoppers, residents and visitors moving along New Hampshire Street and nearby Massachusetts Street.

John Harrison said the nonprofit expects grant funding to cover utilities and insurance, giving landlords a low-risk way to keep buildings active while they look for longer-term tenants. Harrison estimated there are about 24 open storefronts in downtown Lawrence, a figure that underscores how much unused space remains in the city’s core.

The idea is modeled after OpenStudios Wichita, which launched in 2018. Wichita’s downtown revitalization efforts have also included Downtown Wichita, formed in 2002, and placemaking projects such as Front Porch. OpenStudios Lawrence is trying to adapt that same approach for Douglas County, using artists to turn idle retail space into an active storefront that can still show what downtown has to offer.

For artists, the appeal is cost and visibility. A temporary storefront can work as a studio, a gallery and a sales floor without the expense of a traditional lease. For landlords, the arrangement keeps a building from sitting empty and gives them a letter of intent that can help as a tax write-off. For downtown, the payoff is more immediate foot traffic and a more active streetscape in a district that already depends on people lingering, browsing and spending time outside a single destination.

That matters in a part of Lawrence that the city’s Downtown Lawrence Plan describes as central to the city’s identity and growth. The plan calls storefront reinvestment an opportunity site and says downtown’s history is etched into its storefront facades even as the area continues to adapt to changing times and circumstances.

The district’s economic weight is already substantial. One downtown business publication says the heart of Downtown Lawrence, including Mass Street and the blocks around it, is home to more than 400 businesses, many of them locally owned. Lawrence’s arts economy also gives the project added significance: a city economic overview cites a 2017 arts-and-economic-prosperity study that found arts and culture generated more than $30.76 million in total spending in Lawrence, supported 1,061 full-time jobs, produced $19.29 million in household income and delivered $1.255 million in local government revenue.

With its first opening at 745 New Hampshire St., OpenStudios Lawrence is betting that a vacant storefront can do more than wait. It can help make downtown feel lived-in again.