School site is to be £3m arts hub
A boarded-up former primary school in Perth will be transformed into a £3m creative hub, it has been confirmed.
Perth and Kinross Council is spearheading the regeneration project at the former St John’s Primary School in Stormont Street which will see gardens, galleries and a cafe created.
It is to be given the name Creative Exchange Perth and become a home for artists, creative industries, business ‘incubation’ and community education, as well as part of the case for Perth’s city of culture bid.
And it could help create around 20 full- time jobs during the construction period and upon completion would offer space for artists and creative enterprises.
The venture is a partnership project led by Perth and Kinross Council in close partnership with WASPS, Scotland’s largest provider of creative studios space. Key stakeholders Perth College, Elevator - the Business Gateway’s current contract provider in Tayside - Perth Contemporary Arts Trust (PCAT), and Perth Visual Arts Forum (PVAF) are also guiding the project.
The late 1920s building has lain vacant since 2011.
The redevelopment will see former classrooms partitioned into studios which artists will be able to stamp with their own brand and identity.
A privately-funded Innovation Lab will also be housed in the facility.
The hub will support business incubation and acceleration for around 35 businesses in the creative industries as well as digital technologies and computer software.
Jim Valentine, depute chief executive of Perth and Kinross Council, said: “Creative Exchange Perth is an ambitious project being taken on by Perth and Kinross Council and our private and public sector partners, which recognises the importance of the creative industries in growing the local economy.
“Perth is currently the only city in Scotland that doesn’t have affordable studio and office space for its creative people. This has contributed to a brain drain in creativity in Perth and Kinross.
“Working with our partners, the Creative Exchange facility will provide an incubator to nurture talent, and retain these key skills in the area. The corralling of talent into a dedicated work space will facilitate a new approach of creative networking and collaboration.”
PKC is chipping in £2.7m to the project, with the Scottish Government investing an indicative £335,000 from the Regeneration Capital Grant Fund. Elsewhere, £250,000 has been awarded by the European Regional Development Fund, £100,000 from the Community Investment Fund and £150,000 has been awarded to partner organisation WASPS for the scheme.