Today’s groundbreaking of the new Performance Arts Center has been nearly 15 years in the making. For me, this is a particularly personal milestone. I served on the Howard County Council in 2010 when the Downtown Columbia Plan passed unanimously. I am thrilled to see parts of this plan come to fruition today. Downtown Columbia will continue to grow and expand as a destination for the arts. We are also fulfilling our commitment to providing more diverse income housing in this highly desirable downtown area, furthering our mission to keep Columbia a truly inclusive place for all.
The Performing Arts Center will be located at the site of Toby’s Dinner Theatre. For 46 years, Toby’s has been a cultural landmark, bringing award winning theatre to Columbia. The center will contain one 340-seat dinner theater, two 200-seat black box theaters, a public art gallery and several dance studios and performance classrooms.
The PAC will become a part of a broader network of arts organizations that have a presence in Downtown, including the Merriweather Arts & Culture Center, Inner Arbor Trust, the Lakefront, Color Burst Park and the Chrysalis. Additionally, Toby’s will become a part of the Columbia Center for the Theatrical Arts, or CCTA, a nonprofit organization which provides performing arts education to youth throughout the county.
The Merriweather District is a major arts and cultural hub in Howard County and the region. The Arts Council is looking forward to being part of the New Cultural Center and contributing to the vibrancy of the District’s art scene. Our new gallery and community black box theatre will provide much-needed creative space for artists to present new work and for residents and visitors to enjoy and engage in the arts. Today, we are not just breaking ground for new construction - we are laying the groundwork for a place to enrich and uplift our community and to nurture the next generation of writers, directors, producers, patrons, actors and artists.
The Artists Flats will feature 174 mixed-income units serving a full spectrum of household incomes. It will be the first of its kind mixed-use building in the county. The 2010 Downtown Columbia Plan calls for the establishment of a Downtown Columbia Community Housing Foundation (DCCHF) to manage a full spectrum affordable housing program. Such a program aspires to make new housing in Downtown affordable to individuals earning across all income levels. The Columbia Downtown Housing Corporation (CDHC) was then formed in 2014.
“A core component of a vibrant community is a strong arts space that encourages creativity,” said Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day. “The Performing Arts Center & Artists Flats will not only become a place of creativity in Columbia, but will serve as a catalyst for continued economic growth in the area and an opportunity for more people to live affordably in Howard County.”
Howard Hughes entered into a Development Rights and Responsibilities Agreement (DRRA) with Howard County in 2017 that would create 900 affordable units in Downtown at full buildout, of which over 400 units are to be integrated into Low-Income Housing Tax Credit developments built by the Housing Commission. The PAC/Artists Flats is one of these tax credit developments.
Artists Flats will contain a memorial for the late Tom Carbo, who was the Executive Director of the Housing Commission at the time the affordable housing plan for Downtown Columbia Plan passed in 2016.
The total projected budget for the Performing Arts Center is $68,731,541. The largest portion comes from the CCTA State Grant at $2 million. The developer will contribute $1,050,160. The rest will be supplemented by bonds supported by Downtown Columbia tax revenue, CCTA rent, Maryland State Arts Council Grant and a Howard Hughes fee.
“This plan has been a long time coming, and I'm thrilled to see it coming to fruition," said Senator Guy Guzzone. "The State is invested in seeing Downtown Columbia thrive, and we are proud to be an ardent supporter of this project. There's no doubt these new amenities will enhance the lives of the residents of Howard County, which is a shining beacon of development and growth."
Here’s what others had to say:
“Realizing how essential the arts are to a vibrant and inclusive community, visionary developer James Rouse invited Toby Orenstein to the new city of Columbia, Maryland to represent theatrical arts and she has done so strongly and proudly for over 50 years,” said Mark Minnick, Associate Producer, Toby’s Dinner Theatre. “Finally, after a lot of passionate hard work, Toby’s school, The Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts, will now have a permanent home alongside a brand-new state-of-the-art Toby’s Dinner Theatre located in The New Cultural Center. We are grateful and extremely excited to continue offering the best in education and live performance with the strong support of Howard County.”
"We are excited to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Performing Arts Center and Artists Flats. Projects like this are integral to delivering an amenity rich destination attracting more residents, businesses, and visitors to Merriweather District and downtown Columbia," said Kristi Smith, President of the Maryland Region for Howard Hughes Holdings Inc.
“This is the kind of project the Housing Commission and Howard County envisioned when we talk about inclusive, forward-thinking communities,” said Jacqueline West Spencer, Chair, Howard County Housing Commission. “Artists Flats brings us closer to James Rouse’s founding vision for Columbia- a place where people of all incomes, backgrounds, and professions can live side by side in a vibrant, welcoming downtown.”
“As a board member of the Columbia Downtown Housing Corp., I have the privilege of serving with a board that is passionate about advocating for affordable housing in Columbia,” said John DeZinno, Member, Columbia Downtown Housing Corp. “We are so grateful to everyone on the housing commission who helped make this happen.”
“What a hopeful and inspiring moment,” said Reggie O’Shields, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal and Compliance Officer with Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta. “This is a beautiful example of what happens when you can bring affordable housing into a community and support amenities and make that available to all people.”
“As we can all attest, an affordable home within a solid community provides families with a stable foundation for being able to achieve all their other life goals and aspirations,” said Adria Crutchfield, Executive Director, Baltimore Regional Housing Partnership. “We applaud all the efforts that are making this beautiful concept of mixed-use gathering spaces with residential units into a reality.”
“This is a case where I am quite confident Jim Rouse would be very pleased to see this coming about,” said Philip Porter, Senior Vice President, Head of Acquisitions, Housing Credit Investments with Enterprise Community Partners. “This is consistent with his vision for Columbia, which is to bring cultural amenities to create community. This placemaking that is happening with this development is a great example of that vision.”