The Factory in St. Petersburg is making big moves to become an all-encompassing joint for creatives in the 'Burg. Let us explain. Kara Behar told CL that 2020 will be a great year for The Factory, and that we can expect many of our local favorites to create a home within the space including Daddy Kool Records and a Black Crow Coffee counter. We've already mentioned the forthcoming Barely Common brewery, but Behar said that much more is in store.
“Timelines are false promises,” Behar, who works at Behar & Peteranecz Architecture, tells CL. “We’re moving as fast as we can, and we’re gonna break ground in January 2020.”
She’s talking about a vision that belongs to Liz Dimmitt, called The Fairgrounds, who’s worked with artists in New York City and Hong Kong — plus Tampa’s Penny and Jeff Vinik who asked Dimmitt to help create The Beach, a 15,000-square-foot immersive art installation filled with 1.2 million small white balls at Amalie Arena in 2016.
According to its website, The Fairgrounds will take over a 12,000-square-foot space dedicated to an experiential art exhibition featuring, "a transforming range of artworks by local and international artists, performers, writers, musicians and storytellers," and will "celebrate Florida’s many dimensions, embracing all things weird, wacky and wonderful."
We can expect The Fairgrounds to host frequent exhibits, events, workshops and creative education programs.
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