Credit: Erich Martin/Levittownnow.com
The Centre for the Arts in Bristol Borough has closed and a popular neighboring eatery is moving in.
The art gallery in the 300 block of Mill Street was part of Bristol Borough’s revitalization of the central business district. Nonprofit Bristol Borough: Raising the Bar ran the Centre for the Arts since its opening in 2015.
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In a statement to LevittownNow.com, Raising the Bar said the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the center’s ability to operate and continue forward.
“Over the past year the COVID associated economic downturn caused art sales to plummet and state mandated crowd size restrictions made it impossible to continue our monthly special exhibits. The Centre survived from artists’ leases of wall space. With the decline in sales, many artists, feeling their own economic pinch, could no longer justify paying their gallery rent without seeing a reasonable return on their investment and understandably chose to leave the gallery,” the nonprofit’s board of directors said.
Credit: Erich Martin/Levittownnow.com
Itri Wood Fired, a brick oven pizzeria next door that opened in 2017, will expand their operation into the closed art gallery under a long-term lease.
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The restaurant has rented half the space of the Centre for the Arts for years, making the transition easier, according to the nonprofit’s board of directors.
The restaurant is owned by Dana Pezza, the wife of Bristol Borough Council Greg Pezza, whose father Bill Pezza was key in opening the Centre for the Arts.
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Raising the Bar officials said that the lease will help cover the cost of the mortgage, taxes, utilities, insurance, and building maintenance, while also providing additional funds to support the nonprofit’s mission.
During the operation of the arts center and gallery, the nonprofit was entirely run by volunteers, mainly by those older and at higher risk for COVID-19. Last year, the nonprofit used some of their funds to pay school interns to staff the gallery, but the board of directors noted the “arrangement was not fiscally sustainable.”
Credit: Submitted
“As for our artists and volunteers, we salute the talent and passion they displayed over the years and cherish the friendships we’ve cultivated. We’re exploring the possibility of funding a virtual, state-of-the-art gallery available to our artists to allow for on-line sales and exhibits,” the statement said. “We set out to advance the arts in Lower Bucks County and are proud of the five years we devoted to the effort and pleased that other artist outlets have grown since.”
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Raising the Bar officials have noted that locals have a “keen interest” in the ongoing public art and mural program. Bristol Borough presently has three murals, two of which were supported by Raising the Bar.
“There is a talented arts community in the borough, and Raising the Bar is committed to supporting it in ways that are evolving,” the board of directors said.
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The Centre for the Arts was converted from the closed Ballow’s Shoes store.
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