Photo by Susannah Moore
Do you have an opinion about the future Torpedo Factory Art Center? Make sure your voice is heard by providing your views on the newest Action Plan for Vibrancy and Sustainability at Torpedo Factory Art Center.
At a public virtual meeting held Wednesday evening, staff from the City’s Office of the Arts gave a brief presentation on the background of the plan and some of its main points.
There will be another public meeting on the action plan on Dec. 11 at noon here. To provide feedback, contact the Office of the Arts by emailing arts@alexandriava.gov.
In the fall of 2018, the City decided to keep its control over the art center but wanted a quick plan to bring vibrancy and sustainability to the aging Alexandria institution.
They hired a consultant to review 15 previous plans that referenced the art center and identify common themes and goals. These findings were then released in September 2019 in a Study of Studies. From there the action plan was developed and completed in early 2020 before COVID-19 delayed the release of the study until October 2020. The City is now asking for community feedback on the plan.
The plan has three main goals: reestablish the art center’s identity, curate the building and rebuild the art center’s rule in the community.
The new identity will reflect the needs of a 21st century audience by being interactive, family-friendly, and diverse through programing, events and an expanded role of the center’s Target Gallery.
The building will be adapted to make the art center more welcoming and integrated with the rest of the waterfront area where it is located. This could be accomplished by making the waterfront entrance the main building entrance, creating more flexible and engaging spaces on the first and third floors, or using the rooftop as a restaurant or other community gathering place.
The art center will also redevelop its role in the community with a clear mission and vision. The center will update policies, procedures and standards to make the art center a more viable and economically sustainable institution over the next 5 to 10 years. Due to funding issues, there is currently no timeline when physical changes to the art center will begin.
A few public attendees of the meeting expressed concern that the plan should emphasize preserving the building’s rich history and consider the interests of the artists.
