Fort Worth unveils preliminary plans for downtown community arts incubator

Fort Worth will soon provide affordable space for artists and emerging organizations looking to develop their creativity, and the public is invited to help develop the project.

Elected officials and arts leaders gathered at City Hall on Nov. 9 to present preliminary plans for a historic downtown building that will be renovated into a new community arts incubator.

The city purchased the property at 512 W. 4th St. in August 2024 to serve as the Fort Worth Public Library’s new downtown branch. In June, city leaders determined the building, built in the 1920s, could not proceed as a library due to layout challenges.

Mayor Mattie Parker tapped Bob Jameson, former CEO of Visit Fort Worth, to chair a working group of council members and arts leaders to evaluate how the building could instead serve the arts. 

A timeline for when the arts incubator would open is still in the works, but it will take approximately two years from the start of construction, chief city spokesperson Sana Syed said via email. 

The proposed arts incubator will be equitably accessible to creative professionals at all stages of their careers and operate sustainably, transparently and adaptably to changing needs, said working group member Wesley Gentle, who also leads Arts Fort Worth. 

Here’s a breakdown of key amenities featured in concept plans for the arts incubator:

• Basement: 1,000-square-foot rehearsal space, three smaller rehearsal spaces, four practice rooms and a kitchen. 
• 1st floor: 2,050-square-foot event and gallery space, seven small rehearsal or office spaces and artist reception center. 
• 2nd floor: 3,350-square-foot performance space and 800-square-foot classrooms.
• 3rd floor: Six artist studios available for short-term rent and shared dark room for photography.
• 4th and 5th floors: 18 artist studios and shared lounge areas.

Concept plans are designed to preserve the historic building on a tight budget, said Michael Bennett, CEO of Bennett Partners architecture firm. City officials are allocating $11 million to the project. 

“A lot of the analysis that we have done is looking at this and saying, ‘What are the artistic uses that could logically fit without destroying the building and without costing a lot of money?’” he told attendees. 

The city-owned facility will serve a diverse range of creative disciplines, but individual artists will be the priority followed by arts organizations and then the general public, Gentle said.

“We want to make sure that the creative professional working here finds the resources that they need to grow, so they’re staying, they’re thriving,” he said.

Jameson clarified the new downtown facility would not serve as a replacement for the now-closed Fort Worth Community Arts Center in the Cultural District. That facility was not part of the group’s charge, he said.

Prominent Fort Worth foundations funded a monthslong feasibility study to determine the future of the shuttered community arts center. Findings are expected to be released later this fall. 

Following the presentation, community members headed to City Hall’s main lobby to provide feedback on the preliminary plans. 

Nancy Wilson, a Fort Worth native and University of North Texas art student, was excited to see arts leaders’ focus on ensuring the incubator is sustainable and can further support creatives after the community arts center closed to the public. 

She wondered whether practice spaces will be free to reserve or whether availability will be based on membership fees. 

“The biggest feedback I put is ensuring access across all (economic) classes,” Wilson said. “Providing amenities like these are usually taken advantage of by the upper middle class. What is going to be the cost for the average resident to participate and be part of this space?”

Residents are encouraged to review the plans and share their thoughts online here by Nov. 23. Another public meeting is not currently planned. 

Who serves on the mayor’s working group?

• Bob Jameson, former CEO of Visit Fort Worth
• Council member Deborah Peoples
• Council member Macy Hill
• Council member Jeanette Martinez
• Council member Elizabeth Beck
• Wesley Gentle, executive director of Arts Fort Worth
• Michael Bennett, CEO of Bennett Partners 
• Sam Bennett with Bennett Partners 
• Ginger Ray Walker, owner of Ginger Ray Walker Art Studio and Gallery
• Cinetrea Grace, founder of 619 Productions
• Brandi Waller-Pace, executive director at Decolonizing the Music Room

• Misty Locke, co-director of the Fort Worth Art Dealers Association
• Wally Jones, executive director at Casa Mañana Theatre 
• Andrew Walker, chief curatorial executive at Fort Works Art
• Shasta Haubrich, executive director at Art Tooth
• Jay Duffer, artistic director at Amphibian Stage
• Michelle Cortez Gonzalez, co‑founder of ArtHouse East
• Sedrick Huckaby, co-founder of Kinfolk House
• Travis Avila, muralist 
• Lauren Saba, founder of Fort Works Art
• Philip Newburn, chair of Fort Worth Art Commission

David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at [email protected].

The Fort Worth Report’s arts and culture coverage is supported in part by the Meta Alice Keith Bratten Foundation and the Virginia Hobbs Charitable Trust. At the Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.