Coliseum Building Murals
Two years ago, in the aftermath of the George Floyd protests, Lake Street sat in ruins. The 111-year-old Coliseum Building that had previously been a center for small BIPOC businesses lay demolished. But now, Seward Redesign is breathing new life into the historic building, slowly turning the bones of the old structure into a hub for Black-owned businesses.
Redesign Inc., a nonprofit community development corporation, saw the need to restore hope to the community and bring back “the heart of the neighborhood” by engaging the community with messages of hope. Last Friday, Seward Redesign revealed a colorful art wrap on the 72,000 sq. ft. of the building’s exterior. The poems and art were made through a collaboration with fiveXfive Public Art Consultants and TruArtSpeaks to commission poet Isha Camara and emerging graphic artists Precious Wallace, Daren Hill, Emma Eubanks, and Noah Lawrence-Holder to create scenes of strength and resilience to mark the completion of the first phase of redevelopment.
As the project moves forward, phase two will focus on restoring the building's interior while continuing to center BIPOC voices throughout the redevelopment process and hiring as many BIPOC owned firms as possible. Seward Redesign is working with three Black-owned businesses to co-own and operate the building including Chris Montana of Du Nord Craft Spirits, Alicia Belton of Urban Design Perspectives, and Janice Downing of CommonSense Consulting@Work.
“While we are gathering the financing to begin construction this summer, we want to show the community that we are rebuilding and recovering Lake Street in a new and equitable way,” says project lead Taylor Smrikarova in a statement.
