Richard Lundin, property manager of Front Street, home to the largest community of artists, artisans and small businesses in Dayton.
“My wife and I were living in Chicago” he told me. “When I retired the owners of Front Street asked if I could help them out. I thought I’d be here a few months, but that was five years ago. We love living in Dayton, and we love our customers, the artists and small businesses who rent space at Front Street.”
“A hundred years ago these three buildings housed a company that made stamped envelopes that were sold in post offices across the country. Now we have 125 different tenants, about two thirds of which are artists or groups of artists. To help these artists, we’ve done what we can to attract customers to this space. We have music and food at First Friday, Second Look Saturday, and Third Sunday events that attract sizable crowds. The pandemic has hurt the artists who rent here, but no one has moved out. We’re still 100% full, with a waiting list.”
“To attract more customers we’ve made several changes to our outdoor spaces. We started a sculpture garden, and we added an outdoor gallery space. The gallery is called The Cube, and will be curated by Nicholaus Arnold. We’ve also added a few outdoor studios in a secure lot next to one of our buildings.”
“Sunday from 11 to 4 we’re having what we call a soft re-opening of our 3rd Sunday Market. There will be art, crafts, lunch and live entertainment. Many of our artists will have their studios open, so there will be things to do both indoors and out.”
