More than $500K in Grants Awarded for New Arts District and Creative City Planning Project

Two local arts groups, Pillsbury House + Theatre and Intermedia Arts, received more than half a million dollars in grant money from ArtPlace, a national coalition of foundations, federal agencies and banks.

Pillsbury House + Theatre

Pillsbury House, a non-profit theater, will receive $250,000 toward establishing a new Chicago Avenue Arts District.

“I’ve loved this neighborhood for the past 17 years; it’s an incredibly diverse, mind-expanding, alive, creative place to live and work,” said Noel Raymond, Pillsbury House’s co-director. “Unfortunately, the true character of the neighborhood is not always reflected in media portrayals or, sometimes, in the physical landscape on Chicago Avenue. ArtPlace will help us bring awareness and transform the physical space, so that the energy and strengths of these neighborhoods are really recognized.”

The ArtPlace grant will allow for the commissioning and implementation of 20 art projects along the Chicago Avenue corridor.

Intermedia Arts

Intermedia Arts, a non-profit arts and cultural center in south Minneapolis, will apply its $325,000 grant toward a new partnership between city planners and local artists on transportation, economic, environmental and societal issues.

“The arts aren’t just for theaters and museums: they’re for our streets, our neighborhoods and our daily lives in every corner of our city,” Minneapolis mayor R.T. Rybak said.