What makes Minnesota Street Project a solution to San Francisco’s property costs?

The Purpose
The City of San Francisco needed to address the challenges faced by artists and art organisations due to the booming property market, emphasising the urgent need to prevent artists from being priced out of the city.

The Challenge
The challenge of rising property costs in San Francisco has forced established galleries and artists out of their long-used spaces. The challenge was to create a sustainable, privately funded art space that catered to diverse disciplines and career stages while keeping rents low. There was scepticism about whether visitors would travel to the proposed area, ‘Dogpatch’, traditionally not known for its arts scene.

Since opening in March, 2016, the project has welcomed over 30,000 visitors per year and is on track to achieve full economic sustainability

The Solution
The establishment of the Minnesota Street Project, a 100,000-square-foot art space in the Dogpatch neighbourhood of San Francisco. This project provides affordable, long-term leases for ten independent art galleries, artists and arts organisations. It is privately funded, with an emphasis on financial sustainability rather than maximum profit, aiming to support the art community.

The Impact
Since opening in March 2016, the project has welcomed over 30,000 visitors per year and is on track to achieve full economic sustainability. The project’s innovative features, such as shared services and low rents, have solved the problem of rising property costs and the potential displacement of artists and arts organisations in San Francisco.

Source: World Cities Culture Report 2022