ATHENS, Ohio — From its annual Honey for the Heart parade to its iconic artworks, Passion Works Studio is synonymous with Athens, and has been for 25 years. Now, it’s preparing to give new life to a landmark building in the city.
The studio for artists with and without developmental differences has outgrown its 20 E. State St. location, where it moved into in 2009. When the leadership team began looking for new location options around six months ago, there was really only one place that fit the studio’s goals: the former location of Ambassador Laundries on Stimson Avenue.
The building has been vacant for almost a year, after the Downard family closed the 78-year-old business. Passion Works founder and Director Patty Mitchell reached out to Mike Downard, who owns the property.
“It’s been a family-owned business for generations, and they didn’t want it knocked down. It’s an important feature of our community,” Mitchell said. “They were looking for somebody to take over the property, so it was literally a match made in heaven. It is just so perfect for us.”
The Downards were enthusiastic about the idea, Mitchell said.
“[He said] ‘I’d love to talk to you,’ and he was just so warm … so we got together, we talked about opportunities and we’ve moved forward since in a big way rather quickly,” Mitchell said. “What excites me so much is that it’s a community-based approach to saving our history and looking out for each other. It’s our story. It’s Athens’ story.”
With big goals and aspirations comes big price tags: Renovating the 11,000-square-foot space will take $5 million. But the studio has already made serious progress: As of late February, a fundraising campaign had raised $2.1 million.
Among the donors is the Schoonover family, who are supporting creation of the Schoonover Family Learning Center at the new location. The center will help Passion Works show other communities how to replicate its programs, Mitchell said.
“We are absolutely dedicated to sharing whatever we’ve learned and to make it so that other communities’ organizations can pick up a little bit of our model and make it work for them,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell shared a statement from the Schoonover family that expressed their reasons for supporting the project.
“Both of our parents believed deeply in education, experiential learning and disadvantaged members of society,” the statement reads. “Our family believes this brings their passion full circle as we support the community of Athens, Ohio, through the incredible work of Passion Works Studio.”
A larger facility also will allow the artists to explore art forms such as jewelry making, printmaking, metalsmithing and sewing, Mitchell said. A part of the original Athens Brick Factory, which is located in the back of the former dry cleaners, will house a new ceramics workbench. There will be improvements in accessibility, too, with a 20-space parking lot, three bay doors and a loading dock. The studio also plans to build a stage to host local bands and events.
“[We want it] to be like the gateway into Athens, and so we have every intention of turning this building into a jewel box and putting shiny and funny things all over it,” said Mitchell. “I’m so grateful that we were able to build a passion, and we did it here in this town. I love hearing that the essence of Athens can be felt within the studio. It’s really sweet.”
Learn more about the studio’s campaign and the history of Ambassador Laundries here.
Let us know what's happening in your neck of the woods!
Get in touch and share a story!
