CAZENOVIA — The Cazenovia community is invited to join CazArts on Sept. 10, from 7 to 9:30 p.m., for the grand opening of the renewed Carpenter’s Barn.

CazArts is an alliance of area arts organizations, individual artists, and the public that works to promote the creation and appreciation of arts in the greater Cazenovia area.

Originally built in 1889 as a carriage house for the former Lakeland estate (now Lakeland Park), Carpenter’s Barn has been partially re-purposed to serve as a dynamic arts hub and “welcoming gateway” to the Village of Cazenovia.

The building’s interior was refurbished and repurposed using a $62,000 beginning grant from the Madison County Capital Resource Corporation, which was secured cooperatively by CazArts, the Village of Cazenovia, Cazenovia College, and the Cazenovia Area Community Development Association (CACDA) in July 2020.

“Work has continued throughout this past year, funded by generous gifts from members of the community,” said CazArts Board President Geoffrey Navias. “A [$9,953] grant from the Central New York Community Foundation was just received to help with furnishing the Community Arts Room and the Artists Studio Space.”

Mike Walker of Expert Building Services completed the building improvements.

“The stable half of the building had been made into little rooms with drop ceilings and shag rugs, and it was reminiscent of a beat-up 1960 motel in bad repair,” said Navias. “Everything had to be stripped down to its early form, exposing a stone wall that had not been seen for at least 100 years, [as well as] windows that had been hidden by the ceiling.”

The project also involved installing a new bathroom and artists’ sinks; taking apart, cleaning, and reassembling the tongue and groove beadboard walls and ceiling; adding new lighting and fixing the electrical wiring; and shoring up and reinforcing any structural problems.

In the future, if possible, CazArts hopes to improve the heating in the Community Arts Room, install a second bathroom, and improve both the interior and exterior lighting.

According to Navias, the transformed Carpenter’s Barn has the potential to serve the arts community in a variety of ways, including as a studio/workspace for individual artists, the Cazenovia Watercolor Society, or other artist groups; a venue for workshops and programs with local artists and Cazenovia College; a small business resource center for artists; a place to view artwork in progress; an organizational home-base for art festivals and events; a meeting place for artists seeking to initiate new programs; and an information center for visitors looking to connect with local artists.

The village, which has owned Carpenter’s Barn since 1934, will continue to use the building’s attic space for storage.

According to Mayor Kurt Wheeler, the village looks forward to collaborating with CazArts to make the building a local and regional arts hub. The municipality also plans to partner with local artists to mentor students in the space as an ongoing part of the Cazenovia Joint Youth Recreation Program.

“The space has been severely underutilized during most of the year, and we are excited to see this beautiful building used to its full potential for the benefit of the community,” Wheeler said. “We are delighted with our partnership with CazArts and believe this will be an outstanding use for the building. The partnership has already yielded incredible long-term improvements to the space and we are optimistic about all the great programming that will occur in the future.”

The grand opening event will include a ribbon cutting ceremony with the mayor, an introduction to the CazArts Board of Directors, an acknowledgement of the project’s supporters, the “What Shapes Your Dreams” youth art challenge awards, and a few “surprises.”

The youth art challenge launched on May 1, 2021 to showcase the creative spirit and innovative talents of Cazenovia area youth. Students grades K-12 were invited to create and digitally submit their work in photography, graphic art, fine art, written word, digital arts, video, musical composition, musical performance, dance or performance art.

The following organizations plan to participate in the grand opening: Catherine Cummings Theatre, CACDA, Cazenovia Area Painters, Cazenovia Art Trail, Cazenovia College School of Art & Design, Cazenovia Counterpoint, Cazenovia Preservation Foundation, Cazenovia Public Library, Cazenovia Public Library Museum, Cazenovia Watercolor Society, Common Grounds, Greater Cazenovia Area Chamber of Commerce, Lorenzo State Historic Site, New Woodstock Free Library, Sky Hill Farm Studio, and Stone Quarry Hill Art Park.

The event is presented as part of CazArts’ September Autumn Leaves Arts Festival and sponsored by Common Grounds, Cazenovia College, and Community Bank. COVID safety protocols will be followed, masks will be worn where appropriate, and a reception tent will be set up outside to allow for social distancing.

An open house is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 11, from 2 to 5 p.m.

“It will be a chance for the ‘Arts in Cazenovia’ to celebrate and be celebrated,” said Navias. “Community [members,] patrons, artists, organizations, youth, seniors, and [any interested] individuals [are invited to attend]. There will be the chance for greeting old friends, making new acquaintances, learning about what different organizations and artists are doing, and helping us dream about different programs and projects that could best serve the Cazenovia community through Carpenter’s Barn.”

Cazenovia Heritage will present a historic tour of Carpenter’s Barn and Lakeland Park on Sept. 11, from 3 to 3:30 p.m. Ted Bartlett, senior associate and the senior preservation planner at Crawford & Stearns, Architects and Preservation Planners, will lead the tour.

Brief histories of Carpenter’s Barn and Lakeland Park are available in the November 2020 CazArts Newsletter.

Parking is available in the Lakeland Park parking lot. For the grand opening, additional parking will be available at the Cazenovia Club at 4 Ledyard Ave.

Through Sept. 30, every donation to CazArts will be tripled through the Ann S. Cross Fund for the Arts, a “challenge gift” from longtime Cazenovia resident John (Jack) Rooney.

“For the last two years, CazArts has been a volunteer organization,” said Navias. “To finish the next steps on the building, and to help us get programs underway, we are in the midst of a fund drive. The community is invited to support this exciting initiative.”

Tax-deductible donations can be made online or by mail to 1 Liberty St. Cazenovia, NY 13035.

For updates on Carpenter’s Barn and other CazArts news, subscribe to the monthly newsletter at cazarts.com.