Our project is an intervention crafted to meet our community's concrete needs for habitable buildings and viable employment through the restoration of six historic structures in Free Gut. CHANT Building Arts Institute provides training and education and creates career pathways in the traditional building arts, preserving local artisanal building skills for 40 young people in Frederiksted with barriers to employment.
Caught between the legacy of environmental and economic devastation by Hurricanes Hugo, Irma and Maria, and the economic impacts of the pandemic, Frederiksted has struggled to chart positive economic pathways for residents. Our project is an intervention crafted to meet our community's concrete needs for habitable buildings and viable employment through education and training and the restoration of six historic structures in Free Gut.
In building an accredited training and apprenticeship program for residents, a pipeline for careers in the building arts, historic restoration and preservation and the decorative arts will be established. Upon completion of this ambitious project, historic properties will be occupied by low/moderate income residents along with artists and artisans, bringing life to formerly abandoned spaces.
Establish certificated training in vernacular construction for adults and prepare 75 students for careers in historic restoration and construction. Establish paid apprenticeship program for students with contractors hired to complete restorations of participating buildings in the target community to create new employment with living wages. Restore 6 historic properties and create live/work spaces for low income residents and artists; energize cultural life, increase affordable housing.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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