“An Airbnb for artists”: SpaceFinder Toronto matches artists with under utilized rehearsal and performance space

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For more information contact:
Patrick Kowalczyk, patrick@pkpr.com
Mark McArthur, mark@pkpr.com
PKPR, 212.627.8098

“AN AIRBNB FOR ARTISTS”: SPACEFINDER TORONTO MATCHES ARTISTS WITH UNDER-UTILIZED REHEARSAL AND PERFORMANCE SPACE

Created by U.S. arts org Fractured Atlas, SpaceFinder network to also expand to Hamilton, Ontario in fall 2015

New York, NY (April 30, 2015) – Similar to how AirBnB has opened up a new marketplace for accommodation rentals, a new service is matching Toronto artists with more than 375 under-utilized and alternative rehearsal and performance spaces throughout the city and is poised to launch in a second Canadian community – Hamilton, Ontario – in fall 2015.

Developed by Fractured Atlas, a New York-based organization dedicated to helping artists build sustainable careers through technology, SpaceFinder serves 11 markets throughout the U.S, offering venues a powerful tool for marketing spaces that would otherwise go unrented. The official debut today of SpaceFinder Toronto and the upcoming launch of SpaceFinder Hamilton (Fall 2015) mark the first international expansion of a Fractured Atlas program.

Any venue with rehearsal or performance space in Toronto can promote their rentals on SpaceFinder by creating listings that include a synched calendar to display up-to-date availability, rental rates, photos and equipment inventories. Artists can then easily discover available and alternative space that fits their budget, and creative needs.
Many Toronto venues using SpaceFinder during the beta testing period over the past six months reported significant increases in rental referrals and revenue.

“SpaceFinder Toronto has increased our rentals by 25% in only a couple months and connected us with new renters from various artistic disciplines,” said Kate Nankervis, co-artistic director of Hub14, an artist-run dance studio co-op. “SpaceFinder Toronto’s greatest asset is its fluid administration system, which has helped us cut back on our work load and allowed us to focus on what we do best – serving the artists of our community.”

The SpaceFinder program was brought to Toronto thru a collaboration of ArtsBuild Ontario, the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, and WorkInCulture, with initial launch funding provided by the Metcalf Foundation.

Adam Huttler, Founder and Executive Director of Fractured Atlas, said ArtsBuild Ontario has also partnered with Fractured Atlas on the expansion of SpaceFinder throughout the Ontario province including the fall 2015 launch of SpaceFinder in Hamilton, with local leadership from Hamilton arts nonprofit CoBALT CONNECTS who launched their own creative directory map in 2012 which has grown to over 700 listings and will be the source of initial venue data.
“ArtsBuild is thrilled that SpaceFinder has been embraced by so many so quickly in Toronto, and we look forward to the same success in Hamilton and beyond,” said Karen Stintz, executive director of ArtsBuild Ontario. “This affirms our belief that innovative approaches are keenly desired and that smart collaborations are the way to go.”
Huttler applauded ArtsBuild Ontario’s vision for leveraging SpaceFinder to serve Canada.
“Rather than Canadian communities having to build an expensive service from scratch on their own, we are thrilled to partner with ArtsBuild Ontario on empowering those communities to deliver a valuable service with proven impact,” said Huttler.

Fractured Atlas is in talks with communities, such as the City of Calgary, with cultural plans created with input from local citizens, who identified inventory and discovery of cultural spaces as necessary to the growth of the creative economy and retention of creative talent.

The Canadian launch of SpaceFinder builds on Fractured Atlas’s track record of providing artists with technology tools that help them raise money, insure themselves and their work, manage their careers, and grow their audiences. Its major initiatives include Artful.ly, a free, cloud-based software system that enables small arts organizations to easily sell tickets and raise funds, as well as its fiscal sponsorship program, which helped more than 3,500 arts projects raise over $17.6 million in 2013-2014.

About Fractured Atlas
Fractured Atlas is the largest arts service organization in the U.S., reaching a network of more than 250,000 artists. Dedicated to empowering artists with the support they need to work effectively and thrive, Fractured Atlas provides funding, insurance, technology, education, and other services critical to building sustainable careers and organizations. Founded in 1998, Fractured Atlas is headquartered in New York City. For more information, visit the Fractured Atlas Media Center at http://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/about/media.

About SpaceFinder
For artists, the process of finding available and affordable work space is frustrating and inefficient. Meanwhile many spaces are tragically underutilized, even as rental revenue
continues to be critical for sustainability of creative venues. SpaceFinder is an innovative solution for both artists and creative venues.
For cultural policy-makers the decision making process around building projects, subsidizing venues, or re-purposing space for cultural use often presents a serious challenge. The data collected through SpaceFinder about where spaces are and what artists are looking for can help cultural policy-makers make more informed decisions.

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6 project ideas for the Energize Microloan Fund for the Arts

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lighting 2Does your arts facility need better insulation? Could it use a new lighting system? Maybe even a new roof? Making energy efficient upgrades can save your arts organization money and help it become a greener space.

The Energize Microloan Fund for the Arts program is designed to support projects, plans and reports that save on energy costs and reduce energy consumption. Taking on one of these projects can save your organization money which can go right back into your creative programming.

  1. Energy efficient lighting systems. Lighting is a major source of heat and big electrical energy consumer. On average, about 25% of utility bills are spent on lighting. Switching to an energy efficient lighting system can reduce the amount of energy spent on lighting up to 70%.
  2. Low flow toilets. Two key advantages to installing low flow toilets are water conservation and cost savings. New designs of low flow toilets use approximately 1.6 gallons per flush compared to older models which can use from 3.5 to 7 gallons. Reducing water usage can drastically impact your annual water expenses.
  3. Better insulation. Many older buildings are relatively drafty and lightly insulated, which can result in greater heat loses and higher energy bills. Space heating makes up a good portion on energy bills, so when a well insulated building requires less heating in the winter and less cool air in the summer, your organization can save a lot.
  4. Roof upgrades. The heat caused by your building’s roof makes your air conditioner work twice as hard in warmer months. By replacing your roof with a cool one or retrofitting your current roof with heat reflective materials, your arts organization can save on energy costs that go towards cool air in the summer.
  5. Window improvements. While they provide warmth, light and ventilation, windows can negatively impact overall energy costs. If your building has very old or inefficient windows, it might cheaper to replace them energy efficient ones, which will eventually pay for themselves. They lower heating and cooling costs and sometimes even lighting costs. But you can still make upgrades to your current windows by adding storm windows, caulking and weather stripping.
  6. Replacing any system or component with an energy efficient system or component. You read that right. If you need a new fridge, replacing it with an energy efficient one is an eligible project. Need a new HVAC system? Replacing it with an energy efficient one would qualify. How about a new door? As long as it saves on energy costs and contributes to the sustainability of the facility, it works.

Interested in applying for the Energize Microloan Fund for the Arts? Contact Lindsay MacDoanld, Director of Programs at 519.880-3670 x 102 or lindsay@artsbuildontario.ca.

For more information on the Energize Microloan Fund for the Arts, visit the program page here.

Take our quick energy use survey!

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HOW MUCH ENERGY DOES YOUR BUILDING USE?

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WE NEED YOUR HELP!
As an arts/cultural facility we need to understand how much energy your building uses every year!

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
We need to understand how many KW/H your building uses in a year, as per your hydro bill.

We have put together a brief FOUR question survey – your answers will help us advocate for additional resources to assist our organizations in taking advantage of all incentive programs/opportunities available to reduce your consumption = saving you money every year!

Please find your most recent hydro bill and click the link below!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/artskwh

WHY?
In 2014 as part of our Energy Conservation program at ArtsBuild Ontario, we provided small project grants to organizations to complete needed projects that would result in a reduction in energy consumption in their facilities. We also held two Dollars to $ense workshops for our arts organizations to help them identify ways in which they can save money by making ‘green’ improvements in their facility.

ArtsBuild would like to continue our investment in supporting our organizations in making these energy efficient improvements and finding ways to make them affordable. Understanding your energy consumption can help support our case for more resources for our sector.

OTHER EXCITING NEWS
ArtsBuild will be launching a new program in partnership with Community Forward Fund in a few short weeks – stay tuned!

Announcing our new Executive Director and SpaceFinder Hamilton

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ArtsBuild Ontario is thrilled to both welcome Karen Stintz as our new Executive Director and announce the expansion of our successful SpaceFinder program into Hamilton with partner CoBALT CONNECTS.

karen stintzThe Board of ArtsBuild Ontario is excited to welcome former Toronto Transit Commission Chair and Mayoral candidate Karen Stintz as its next Executive Director. ArtsBuild Ontario is the only organization in Ontario dedicated to providing long-term solutions for building, managing and financing sustainable creative spaces such as theatres, galleries, concert halls and museums in Ontario communities.

“I’m very excited to be joining ArtsBuild Ontario and to have an opportunity to contribute to the arts community, particularly in an area where my expertise from government can be a great asset,” says Karen Stintz. “When we talk about support for the arts, the importance of local arts facilities doesn’t often make it into the conversation – but they’re a tremendously important part of bringing the arts into communities across Ontario.”

Karen comes to ArtsBuild Ontario with a wealth of management and leadership experience from both the public and private sectors. In addition to serving as the Chair of the Toronto Transit Commission, North America’s third-largest public transit system, she has years of experience in the public and private sectors, managing and delivering innovative multi-partner programs.

“At ArtsBuild Ontario we’re working to enable creative centres to not only succeed, but thrive. That’s why I’m very pleased to announce today that through our continued partnership with Fractured Atlas, and CoBALT Connects, we’ll be supporting the expansion of the acclaimed SpaceFinder system to Hamilton, Ontario. This is an important next step to the tremendous success of SpaceFinder Toronto,” adds Karen.

SpaceFinder is a first-of-its-kind free online service that enables artists and event planners to find, schedule, and rent available rehearsal , performance and special event space based on a wide range of needs, including date, time, cost and location. When it launched in Toronto in 2014, it was the first service to offer a large-scale solution for both venues and renters by matching artists with unused rehearsal and performance space. SpaceFinder Hamilton will now help arts organizations in that city do the same thing.

“Fractured Atlas applauds ArtsBuild Ontario’s vision for leveraging SpaceFinder to serve Canada. Together we are empowering communities to bypass expensive technology builds, and jump to delivering a valuable service to artists and cultural venues,” says Adam Huttler, Executive Director, Fractured Atlas.

SpaceFinder is one of a number of innovative tools and programs that ArtsBuild provides to arts organizations. In the coming weeks, ArtsBuild will launch additional new programming to support arts organizations and communities in building, managing and financing sustainable arts facilities.

Does this sound familiar?

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“Problems multiply when short-term solutions are applied to facilities problems. The problems persist and more often get worse.”

“We need evaluations to observe and tell us what a building might need in the future, operationally, including the amount of money needed to maintain it, as well as other project costs.”

Sound familiar? These were just two conversations from our community engagement sessions that addressed the need for lifecycle and maintenance planning for facilities across the province (these examples came from Thunder Bay and Kitchener-Waterloo).

managing_rev1-page-0These are also exactly the questions and concerns that Asset Planner for the Arts is here to answer. With a personalized onboarding process that loads your information directly into the software, asset forecasting for the next 30 years (with a focus on the next five years) and a site visit from a qualified building assessor, setting a facilities management plan in motion has never been easier – or more accessible.

Here’s why The Robert McLaughlin Gallery is participating in Asset Planner for the Arts:

“The Asset Planner for the Arts will improve our current system of inventorying equipment and improve scheduled maintenance cycles. In addition, Asset Planner is able to assist with developing short term and long term financial goals both expenses and savings for the Gallery. We are interested in preventative maintenance opportunities to maximize the longevity of the equipment and the Asset Planner is a tool that will assist us in achieving that success. By joining this program we are receiving continual technical support for the Asset Planner while maximizing its ability to work favourably for the Gallery.”

ArtsBuild’s subsidy for Asset Planner for the Arts saves you 50% off this two-year program. You can’t afford not to learn more. Contact Lindsay to book your free Asset Planner demo.