Warehouse Roulette

Change is no longer on the horizon for the Warehouse Arts District; it’s here.

Eric Firestone Gallery opens a new location tonight from 6pm to 12 midnight in the renovated Old Market Inn at 403 N. 6th Ave. (6th/6th). And earlier today, 1 E. Toole at the corner of Toole and Stone (formerly Zee’s) was sold at auction to Peach Properties in support of Dinnerware Artspace. Other bidders were art-guitar outfit Girl Brand Guitars and Tucson Industrial Authority (IDA had decided to pursue the building for arts use). Director David Aguirre reports that Dinnerware will relocate to its new “permanent home” sometime next year.

The fate of another longtime grassroots art institution is less certain at this point. Solar Culture‘s building goes up for auction on Tuesday, November 10. The Warehouse Arts Management Organization,  with the support of IDA, will be one bidding party present at the sale. WAMO says it’s committed to keeping low rent for Solar Culture, fixing building code issues, and preserving the original historic architectural features as well as artist Steven Eye’s permanent installations. Other interested party is Steve Fenton of Fenton Properties. Fenton owns, among many other downtown commercial and residential properties, the Art Deco-style Reilly Funeral Home at Pennington and Scott and The Academy Lofts. A Save Solar Culture group popped up on Facebook a few days ago, but how? And will it be too late? Meanwhile, the Salvador Duran and Astrofab places between the two bookends are up for sale, as well as MOCA’s former spot in the red building. As I understand it, those should be going to auction in the coming weeks/months if no one attempts to buy them outright. Let the games begin!