The report: Stable spaces

The arts needs physical infrastructure to thrive

Cultural and social infrastructure is enabled by built infrastructure. From home offices, rehearsal studios, recording booths and workshops to theatres, galleries, bars and libraries, the vast majority of creative work is made and shared inside the shelter of a building. 

We need buildings – both custom-built and adaptively repurposed – for the cultural sector of Aotearoa to thrive. 

The report Stable spaces responds to this need by developing a picture of the state of community-owned infrastructure in the arts. This includes establishing how the independent arts sector is housed and exploring how we might improve that situation. 

The report Stable spaces is released alongside its companion report on The Stable Spaces Survey and extended case studies on nine building owning arts organisations in Aotearoa.  

We are currently space-stressed and unstable

Over the last fifteen years in Aotearoa we – both government and creative workers – have mainly focussed our energy on developing temporary and meanwhile uses of space. With some notable exceptions, we have neglected building long-term solutions to space provision. This is reflected in how the arts are housed. 

Artists and arts organisations across artforms struggle to find affordable and appropriate spaces to operate in. In many cases the cost of accommodation is prohibitive or tenure is insecure. This impacts on their ability to create and present work, undertake long-term planning and development, and build sustainable communities. 

In Aotearoa, only a small number of arts organisations and individuals own their own buildings in which they can make or present their artforms. In the 2023 Stable Spaces survey, two-thirds of respondents leased their premises either within the commercial market or from local government, and a fifth had made alternative arrangements, ranging from remote working to moving in and out of temporary spaces or popping up in public spaces. 

A solution to this instability is to support arts organisations to own their own spaces. 

Owning our own infrastructure has significant benefits

Through interviewing representatives from organisations which own their buildings, Stable Spaces identified six major benefits to owning, or having an ownership-like control over a building. These included: increased autonomy; the ability to design or modify a building so it fits its purpose; increased stability and organisational longevity; a perception of professionalism; better financial control; and a flow-on ability to support the wider arts community and economy. 

While a shift to ownership may seem like a daunting prospect for many arts organisations, there are local and international examples that we can learn from, to drive policy and action that increases ownership. Even incremental increases in ownership or ownership-like arrangements will boost organisational stability and have ripple effects into the wider arts community.

Addressing this issue involves focussing on four key areas

Developing nationally-consistent policy

This involves developing a consistent national approach that enables asset transfer; affordable leasehold agreements; and the inclusion of arts facilities and live-work spaces in our developer incentives. 

Growing the range of available financial instruments

This involves addressing funding issues for infrastructure providers; developing a wider range of financing sources than are currently commonly used; and creating collective economies of scale in property management in the arts.

Building property development and management expertise 

This means providing access to general guidance; expert advice; and mentorship to support the transition into building ownership.

Promoting the possibility of building ownership

This involves actively promoting the feasibility and process of arts and community ownership of buildings, to both national and local government and the arts community. 

Stables Spaces proposes two key pathways to grow asset ownership in the arts

1. Create and fund an independent body to provide property development and management service to the arts and community. 

This will provide much-needed expertise and support to arts organisations along the pathway to building ownership.

Modelled on organisations like CAST (Community Arts Stabilization Trust) in San Francisco and Creative Land Trust in London, the mandate of this independent body would be to grow stability in the arts via building ownership. 

The proposed areas of focus include:

• Creating accessible guidance documents on asset transfer and building development and management processes for the arts
• Providing access to advice, technical expertise and legal services
• Developing mentoring options for organisations to develop building ownership-related capability
• Building relationships between developers, local government development arms, impact lenders and arts organisations 
• Providing an umbrella for ownership, funding and financing
• Advocate for the sector on a national level

2. Develop and advocate for nationally-consistent policy and guidance 

This will create the context for the arts to confidently pursue models of asset acquisition such as community asset transfer and community asset transition. 

Current approaches around asset transfer, ground lease settings, the growth of maintenance funds and reserves, and infrastructure operational funding are inconsistent. This causes uncertainty about what is possible, and uneven access to opportunities across the regions. Nationally consistent policy and guidance would give greater confidence to organisations pursuing building ownership, and enable advice to be shared across the sector.

The proposed areas of focus include:

• At a national level, developing an enabling policy for local government to undertake asset transfer and asset purchase for transfer, and to encourage setting affordable, long-term ground rents. 
• Incorporating the construction of arts spaces, including affordable live-work spaces, in our existing development incentive policies and funds
• Developing guidance aimed at end-of-life asset-owning trusts and societies around community asset transition
• Developing best practice guidance around maintenance funds and reserves for all classes of funders 

Who needs to be involved

Developing these pathways will require not only significant community guidance from the arts, but also the participation of the government departments and ministries that have responsibility for community development, arts, housing and urban development. It will need input from Local Government New Zealand and the Companies Office, as well as community law bodies, developers and the philanthropic sector.