Embracing Baltimore's Existing Arts Districts, Not Creating New Ones

"Baltimore already has two arts districts -- Highlandtown/Patterson Park and Station North. It doesn't need a third.

The city declared Highlandtown/Patterson Park an arts district in 2003. That same year, the Creative Alliance at the Patterson (pictured), a mixed use arts/performance space, opened. Offering art exhibits and cutting edge performances, the Creative Alliance was supposed to be the cultural anchor for an arts renaissance in Highlandtown.

Nearly seven years later, Highlandtown/Patterson Park hasn't seen a sliver of the artistic explosion and revitalization that was supposed to happen. Aside from the Creative Alliance and the Southeast Anchor Library, Highlandtown/Patterson Park doesn't have much more in the way of arts than it did in 2003. "

The Station North arts district was created in 2001, but it hasn't been until recently that the district has come to life. Writer Sam Sessa says that the city should put more effort into helping these two existing arts districts thrive before even thinking about spreading them throughout the city.

Thanks to ArchNewsNow