Governor Cuomo Announces $2 Million Award for New Irish Arts Center
NYCREDC Award Supports National Home for Irish American Arts and HeritageNew State-of-the-Art Facility and Performance Space Creates 56 New Permanent Jobs and More Than 150 Construction Jobs
Governor Cuomo recently announced a $2 million grant to support the expansion
of the Irish Arts Center into a new, state-of-the-art facility and performance
space at 726 11th Avenue in Manhattan. The new building will serve as a national home for
Irish and Irish American arts and heritage, offering educational, cultural,
and community programming and providing a global platform for new and
established artists to showcase their work. The Center has now raised
more than $56 million for this new facility; construction is expected
to begin by the end of 2017.
"The story of New York is the story of immigrants and the contributions
of the Irish are woven into the very fabric of this great state,"
Governor Cuomo said. “The New Irish Arts Center will allow New Yorkers and visitors alike
to appreciate the rich legacy of the Irish in America, learn more about
a people and culture that have changed the course of a country and continue
to do so today, and attract new visitors and economic activity to the
region.”
Founded in 1972, the Irish Arts Center builds, shares, and preserves the
rich culture and history of Ireland and Irish America, and offers a dynamic
platform for Irish artistic contributions past and present. For over forty
years, the Irish Arts Center has operated in an aging three-story tenement
building with limited capacity and accessibility; the New Irish Arts Center
will more than triple its current capacity to more than 120,000 patrons
each year.
Aidan Connolly, Executive Director of the Irish Arts Center
said, “Irish Arts Center is proud to accept this transformative economic
development grant from Governor Cuomo. The New Irish Arts Center will
be a place for people of all backgrounds from all over the Empire State
to come together in celebration of the excellence and dynamism of Irish
arts and culture, and share our common heritage and humanity.”
Empire State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Howard Zemsky said, “This new Center is a celebration of the enduring contributions
of the Irish in America and Empire State Development is proud to be a
part of its rich and dynamic growth. With modern facilities and increased
capacity for vibrant, engaging programming, the New Irish Arts Center
will bring together artists and audiences and provide a communal space
to enjoy Irish culture.”
In 2016, the New Irish Arts Center project was awarded $2 million through
Round VI of the Regional Economic Development Council initiative; with
the announcement of this week’s approved incentive proposal, the
new facility will create 56 new permanent jobs, retain 16 jobs, and generate
more than 150 construction jobs. The new LEED Silver building will connect
with the existing Irish Arts Center at 553 W. 51st Street, which will
be renovated to preserve the existing Irish Arts Center.
The New Irish Arts Center will feature:
- A state of the art, flexible contemporary performance space for theatre, dance, live music, installations, interdisciplinary work, residencies, and special events
- A second, more intimate performance space – the historic Irish Arts Center Theatre – optimized for live music, literature, film, talks, large classes and special events
- Industry-standard back of house and support facilities to allow artists to achieve their vision
- Classrooms and studio space for community education programs in Irish music, dance, language, history, and the humanities, and for master classes and workshops by visiting and resident artists
- Technology capability to project Irish Arts Center performances and education programs on the digital platform through podcasts, online classes, event streaming and other emerging forms of interactive learning.
About the Irish Arts Center
The Irish Arts Center is a New York-based arts and cultural center dedicated
to projecting a dynamic image of Ireland and Irish America for the 21st
century, building community with artists and audiences of all backgrounds,
forging and strengthening cross-cultural partnerships, and preserving
the evolving stories and traditions of Irish culture for generations to
come. Our multi-disciplinary programming is centered around three core
areas: performance – including live music, dance, theatre, film,
literature, and the humanities; exhibition – including visual arts
presentations and cultural exhibitions that tell the evolving Irish story;
and education – with dozens of classes per week in Irish language,
history, music, and dance.
Located in New York City, a global capital of arts and culture, Irish
Arts Center serves as a dynamic platform for top emerging and established
artists. Irish Arts Center is currently developing plans to construct
a new facility to serve our multi-disciplinary program and will be the
strongest possible gateway for artists to reach into our cultural community
and nourish their work, to connect with our partner institutions who help
them innovate, and to become visible in the New York City media market
which enhances their ability to achieve U.S and further international success.