The District

Battle Creek has the talent.It needs a home.

The District is our plan for a community arts hub inside WK Kellogg School & Auditorium: one building where artists, students and arts organizations create, learn and perform together.

The vision

Every art and culture organization in Battle Creek, living together under one roof.

Shared space, shared services and shared audiences, so every organization spends less time keeping the lights on and more time making art.

WK Kellogg School and Auditorium in downtown Battle Creek

Thehome

WK Kellogg is already Battle Creek's home for performance and art. We're expanding on it.

The Battle Creek Symphony and the Brass Band of Battle Creek already perform in the auditorium, and What-A-Do Theatre has space in the building. The District builds on that, filling the rest of this 1934 Albert Kahn landmark in the heart of downtown with studios, classrooms and room for every arts organization in the city.

Address: 60 W Van Buren St, Battle Creek
Architect: Albert Kahn, 1934
Status: Fundraising for the feasibility study

Three parts,one home

Built around creativity, entertainment and learning, The District brings three pieces together under one roof.

ACCBCRuns The District: the creative spaces, live programming, community events and shared services.

ForgeExploring the future of visual and performing arts education and workforce development in Calhoun County.

Arts EcosystemBuilding a shared resource model to support the back office of all art and culture orgs in Calhoun County.

Theroadmap

Phase 0Commitment & momentumIn progressPartner organizations committed, community support built and conversations with funders underway.
Phase 1Feasibility & planning$250K to $750KA full feasibility study and building assessment, space planning, and our programming starting up in the building.
Phase 2Renovation & buildout$3M to $10M+Performance spaces, studios, galleries and co-working built out. Forge launches.
Phase 3Operations & scaleSelf-sustainingThe full ecosystem running, most costs covered by earned revenue, and a model other cities can follow.

Ourpartners

Battle Creek Symphony Orchestra
What-A-Do Theatre
Brass Band of Battle Creek
Music Center of South Central Michigan
BC Boychoir & Girls Chorus
Battle Creek Society of Artists
Cereal City Concert Band
Create in Me Art Studio
Kingman Collections
Battle Creek Regional History Museum
Sojourner Truth Institute
Leila Arboretum Society
Color the Creek
Calhoun Area Career Center
Access Vision
Black Squirrel News
Willard Library

Initial partners. More organizations, including from across Calhoun County, are joining.

Help us buildThe District.

Founding partners, phase funders, program sponsors and community investors all have a place here. ACCBC is a 501(c)(3), so gifts are tax-deductible.

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