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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For additional information, contact: October 20, 2011 Heidi Kurtze: (612) 819-6754

Brookland Artspace Lofts grand opening celebration set for Tuesday, Oct. 25

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Entertainment, refreshments, studio tours, and dedication of the Victor L. Selman Community Gallery will be part of the festive grand opening celebration of the Brookland Artspace Lofts on Tuesday, Oct. 25. Located at 3305 Eighth Street N.E. in the Brookland neighborhood, Brookland Artspace Lofts is a mixed-use arts facility developed by Artspace Projects, the nation’s leading developer of space for artists and arts organizations. The $13.2 million project contains 39 affordable rental units, each with both residential and studio space, for artists and their families. It also has a rehearsal studio, classroom, and office space designed to serve Dance Place, which occupies the building next door; a community gallery on the main floor; and a full green roof installed and maintained by DC Greenworks. Tuesday’s event will begin at 6:00 p.m. with a Drum Call and Gathering performed by the Cuban salsa dance troupe DC Casineros. The formal program will begin at 6:15 p.m. with a welcome by the Honorable Mayor Vincent Gray. Artspace Director of Properties Heidi Kurtze will host the evening. The event will also include a performance by Coyaba Dance Theater, a West African dance company will. Speakers will include:

• the Honorable Harry Thomas, Jr., D.C. City Council member (Ward 5) • John E. Hall, Director of the District’s Department of Housing and Community

Development • David Leopold, Debt Products Executive, Community Development Banking, for Bank

of America • Oramenta F. Newsome, D.C. Executive Director, Local Initiatives Support Corporation • Terry Kenny, Market President – Washington Region, TD Bank • Kelley Lindquist, President of Artspace

The ribbon cutting will be immediately followed by the formal dedication of the Victor L. Selman Community Gallery. As chief operating officer of the D.C. Department of Housing and

Brookland Grand Opening October 20, 2011 Page 2 of 2 Community Development (DHCD), Selman, who died in May 2010, was instrumental in bringing the project to fruition. Dedication speakers will include DHCD Director John E. Hall and Dance Place founder Carla Perlo. Special invited guests will include former DHCD Directors Jalal Greene and Leila Edmonds as well as members of Selman’s family. Following the dedication, visitors will be invited to tour the facility. Eighteen of the building’s residents are expected to open their units. There will also be salsa dance lessons and other entertainment provided by the residents. The grand opening of the Brookland Artspace Lofts is Phase 1 of the Brookland Arts and Education Campus. Phase 2, now in planning, will involve major renovation of the Dance Place into an expanded and upgraded facility. Established in 1979, Artspace is America’s leading developer of arts facilities for individual artists and arts organizations. To date Artspace has completed 30 projects in 13 states and helped communities in almost every state address their arts-related space issues. Artspace projects provide more than a thousand affordable live/work spaces for artists and their families and represent an investment of almost $500 million in America’s arts infrastructure. Artspace projects operate in the black, require no ongoing fundraising, catalyze positive development, and have proven sustainable over time. The mission of Dance Place is to transform lives through performing arts and creative education programs that inspire personal growth, professional success, physical wellness and community engagement. Through truly affordable and free programs, Dance Place serves diverse audiences, artists, students, families, adults and children in the greater DC Metropolitan area. Artspace and Dance Place extend their special thanks to Ginger Lay and Well Dunn Catering, which are providing refreshments for the occasion, and to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, the event’s sponsor.

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