Within a year an apartment became available in the same building as the studio. Suffern quickly went from a place to go to work to the place he called home. Many of the locals began to know him by name. His work was progressing and he was establishing a status as an emerging artist. He joined the Chamber of Commerce and became involved in the business community.
But despite the fact that the walk from his apartment to his studio was all but three minutes, the seemingly elusive loft concept still beckoned.
The opportunity finally arose to change all that.
Since he was a business owner and resident living in the Central Business District he was asked to serve on the newly formed Downtown Development Committee (DDC). The DDC was charged with reviewing the current business base and looking at potential changes and improvements that could be done. One measure was to allow what Hoffmann had longed for since his days at Pratt.
The majority of the vacancies in the business district, Hoffmann pointed out, were second floor offices or commercial spaces that were difficult to rent because they lacked ready access for customers. Art businesses, on the other hand, don't require a constant flow of customers throughout the workday so they would be a good fit to occupy these spaces.
"Part of it was getting the committee
to come to terms with artists as
business people. We don't necessarily
keep 9-5 hours and that's what some
officials were looking for. But
I was living proof that artists
could contribute to the community
and that we are respectable businessman
and women," he said.
The birth of an Artist's District
Soon all DDC members backed the proposal, officially stating "the creation
of art and cultural resources together
with living accommodations for artists
would create a unique environment
for increased investment contributing
to the revitalization of the district."
Working closely with the planning
and zoning boards as well as a consulting
engineer on a comprehensive evaluation
of the CBD, Hoffmann and the committee
submitted a draft report to Suffern
Village officials. They believed
they had all the bases covered,
including reversion of the space.
According to Hoffmann, "this local
law created an application process
that granted a change of use for
a space as long as it was occupied
by the
artist that had applied for the
use. Once the space was vacated
it would revert to commercial space.
This was done to assure that the
studio space would not be converted
into apartments for non-artists."
The latter was made part of the law because there was concern about how many residences could be supported in the district. If all the second floors were turned into residences the village infrastructure couldn't support off-street parking for those residents' cars.
A dream realized
On December 7, 1998 the Board of Trustees of the village adopted Local Law No. 14 Of 1998 that allowed artists to apply for a special permit for live/work artist studios within the CB Zoning District.
After applying, Hoffmann was awarded a special permit for a loft at 12 Lafayette Avenue. He took up residence in February 1999. A former sewing machine factory turned flea market turned technology start-up, the 1,200 square-foot loft boasted a long wall of south-facing windows that the artist, who also happens to have a green thumb, curtained with spider plants. Curved walls reminiscent of the curved shapes in his paintings separated the live space from the workspace. The workspace was further divided into a darkroom and a closed workroom where dust from cutting his wood pieces could be contained.
In short, the artist had finally achieved his dream, living and working in the space until October 2003.
To those who want to do the same in their area, Hoffmann advises getting involved with the local community and going through legal channels.
"You need to have local support and be in sync with your landlord," he said.
"Sometimes people will go into a
space and quietly try to use the
space against its zoning but they
just end up losing. No artist wants
the SOHO effect [the gentrification
process that forced many NYC artists
out of their spaces in the 1980s]
to price them out."
For more on the SOHO effect,
click
here to read a solid explanation
by Wikipedia.
If you are an artist or a municipal
official and have any questions
about setting up a live workspace,
feel free to contact us.
