State Commits $1.2M To Dixwell Arts Development

The State Bond Commission is set to approve a $1.2 million grant-in-aid to redevelop a former industrial building at 169 Henry St.

New Haven State Sen. Gary Winfield and Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney announced in a press release Monday that the State Bond Commission is set to approve the funding for the Elm City PostMasters project being developed in the Dixwell neighborhood at a meeting Friday.

“I am thrilled that funding to renovate 169 Henry Street is expected to be approved and I appreciate the governor’s support for this project,” Winfield said in the release. ​“Community service through the arts is an important theme in New Haven and no other city does it quite like us. The Elm City PostMasters will be a great addition to our booming arts scene and will also bring jobs and new opportunities for our city youth to learn, grow, and succeed.”

The PostMasters Project is the brainchild of Titus Kaphar and Jonathan Brand, two Yale School of Art grads. They have raised money to convert the vacant 38,000 square-foot former factory building into apartments, artists’ studios, gallery space, offices and an assembly hall and cafe. (Read more about that here.) The project, which is already underway, is expected to cost about $5.8 million to complete.

“Our team believes in art as a vehicle for civic dialogue and in artists as exceptional innovators and thought leaders who have the ability to change the world,” Kaphar said in the release. ​“The creative nuance and out of the box thinking that is integral to the arts is transferrable to all aspects of life. I have lived all over the country; New Haven is the first place that has felt like home.

“This city has been the catalyst that has helped nourish my family and launch my career,” he added. ​“There is no other place in America I would rather start this project than here.”

Sen. Looney said in the release that the PostMasters project will serve as a model for other community organizations to follow.

“Creating a space for established artists as well as new and emerging artists will add to the fabric of the community, and the jobs and mentorship opportunities will enrich the lives of so many young people,” Loone said. ​“I want to thank Governor Malloy for his support and commend Mr. Kaphar and his partners for turning this dream into a reality.”