Creative Portland should focus on saving artist studios

Published Date Written by Jay York

Editor,
How long before we do something to protect and preserve the presence of the visual artists who are responsible for the arts district here in Portland and for at least $25M spending in the local economy?
We protected the working waterfront for fishermen and we protected land for farmers but not a thing has been done to protect the working studio spaces of artists from the gentrification that always follows forcing them to move. There will be no real "arts district" here in ten years because Portland will have so few affordable studio spaces that artists will be forced to move to Biddeford or Lewiston/Auburn. Creative Portland should make the preservation of affordable studio spaces its top priority and anyone who touts the creative economy here in Portland should put their money where their mouth is.
Jay York
Portland