Tim Neve is an editorial stylist and the publisher of "shop local" titles such as The Junction and Darby who has moved into on one of the empty studio spaces in The Clinic on King Street. Tim's before and after photos show how drab, uninspiring and unutilised space can be transformed with a little of the low budget passion, style and sweat equity that Renew Newcastle is bringing to the city.
The Clinic is a former optometrist clinic that now houses young design-based businesses. The maze of 'patient' rooms have been divided into separate offices and are each being given a new lease of life by their new occupants. While most of our more obvious projects are in shopfronts, The Clinic is a studio space where Renew Newcastle has brought like-minded creative people together.
If you want to see the space for yourself stay tuned for more Renew Newcastle site tours or even hire Tim or one of the tenants of The Clinic for your future project.
Makespace is now open on the corner of Morgan St and the Mall in what once was a shoe shop. It's a a small co-operative workshop and artisan store. The front of the space features a range of hand-made products from five makers, both functional and decorative. At the back of the shop on public view will be five artisan studio spaces used to produce the goods.
WIRELESS broadband internet will be offered for free in the Hunter Street Mall in an initiative designed to attract visitors to the area.
Not-for-profit company Renew Newcastle, which was established late last year to find short- and medium-term uses for vacant inner-city buildings, is working on the project with hosting company Ipera.
They expect to have wireless internet available in the next month.
Renew Newcastle board secretary Marni Jackson said the service would help creative arts projects in mall shop fronts, which would otherwise face great expense to install broadband.
It is hoped the free technology will also encourage visitors and shoppers to frequent the mall, which has struggled to attract business and tenants in recent years.
"If you're there at lunch with your laptop and want to send an email, it will be usable," Ms Jackson said.
"We thought providing the WiFi [internet network] was another attraction for people to use this place and use the area."
It follows the introduction in July 2007 of free wireless broadband internet at Beaumont Street, Hamilton.
Suzie Bailey and Jackie Smallcombe said they would connect a laptop to the service to help in running their handmade clothing and jewellery outlet Make Space, a Renew Newcastle project opening soon in the mall.
We have working bees on to install everything at the moment and are in the process of testing the new system. Stay tuned for the flicck of the big switch!
In a situation that may soon confront many Australian city centers, Newcastle has over a hundred vacant buildings in its two main streets. “Renew Newcastle” is an initiative to rejuvenate the centre of town, not by throwing millions of dollars at it, but by finding creative short- and medium- term uses for vacant shops and offices. This is allowing community groups and cultural projects to move in to otherwise wasted space.
Renew Newcastle will be opened with a launch event at our headquarters in the former Catholic Church at 3 Morgan St Newcastle this saturday 21st of February at 11AM. It will be followed by a tour of the projects led by Renew Newcastle founder, some time ABC TV presenter, and This Is Not Art festival founder Marcus Westbury.
The first seven projects are all taking place in and around Newcastle's Hunter Street Mall. They are the first of dozens of empty shopfronts, offices and sites around the Newcastle CBD that will be brought back to life under the scheme.
The first projects include a new photography gallery, a sound digital and media gallery, an animation studio/production house, a shopfront for children's art and craft classes, an architecture based installation exhibition, an online magazine and design hub, and a shop that will be home to artworks, origami and custom made creatures.
If you are from out of town come up to Newcastle for the day,spend the afternoon hanging out or at the beach and come back in the evening for several exhibition openings!
Are you or someone you know looking to do a project? Find a studio? Take over an empty shop?
For those interested in getting access to a space Renew Newcastle is now looking for projects to be part of our second group. We've been a little preoccupied with getting this first group of projects up and happening over summer. Now they have their keys and have been let loose in their spaces we are looking out for about 10 more projects to be part of our next group.
If you have put in or are consiidering putting in a project application we invite you to come along to our information night for applicants.
It's on WEDNESDAY 11TH FEBRUARY at 6:30pm at Renew New HQ - it's in the small former Catholic Church at 3 Morgan St Newcastle.
Newcastle’s renewal has started with seven sets of keys handed to keen artists to properties in the Hunter Street Mall area as part of the Renew Newcastle project . . .
Newcastle’s art scene is ready for a rebirth.
In the next couple of weeks Newcastle will have a new photography gallery, a sound digital – media gallery, an animator’s studio/production house, a shopfront for children’s art and craft classes, an installation exhibition and a gothic and web-design business.
And that’s just the start.
The art renaissance is due to Renew Newcastle.
The not-for-profit organisation started last year by Marcus Westbury aims to revive Newcastle’s inner city area by matching artists and community groups with vacant buildings.
Within three months, the organisation received more than 100 submissions from local artists and groups, which wanted to become involved in its project.
Renew Newcastle secretary Marni Jackson said the organisation’s unique difference was its lease agreements with property owners.
Agreements allow for a 30-day notice period, so artists would have 30 days notice if the property owners had an interested commercial tenant.
“This way the property owner isn’t losing any money.”
Pro-bono help from Sparke Helmore made it possible for Renew Newcastle to develop this unique licence contract.
So far only seven projects have been given the go ahead, although the organisation has close to 30 properties available.
Ms Jackson said submissions would be worked through and matched where possible to available properties.
“It (the seven successful projects) is only a sample of the diversity – we would like to work with all the artists and groups – to get their projects into one of the spaces available.”
It is hoped the next lot of successful submissions would receive keys within the next month.
The organisation is still on the lookout for more interested artists or community groups as well as property owners and white paint donations.
For more information you can go to www.renewnewcastle.org
Today, Renew Newcastle is very pleased to announce that we have signed up our first major property partner, The GPT Group.
From GPT's media release today:
Revitalising Newcastle
The GPT Group announces its support of the Renew Newcastle project today in line with its commitment to revitalise the Newcastle CBD.
At 3pm today, GPT will handover the keys to the first of a series of buildings it owns, to be managed by the not-for-profit company Renew Newcastle, which has been established to find short and medium term creative, artistic and community uses for vacant buildings.
Renew Newcastle will today move in to the former chapel on Morgan Street, which it will use as a base as it continues to match artists and small businesses with vacant buildings within the CBD.
The GPT Group’s Newcastle CBD Development Manager David Sleet said Renew Newcastle provided an excellent medium for contributing to the revitalisation of the CBD while it goes through a transitional phase. We also see a similar range of activities continuing as an element of the re-developed centre.
“GPT owns a range of properties within the Newcastle CBD and it is important to us that these properties are utilised to the best of their ability as we continue with our plans for GPT’s Newcastle CBD retail project. We are also undertaking other activities to improve the ambience of the area, such as installing the Christmas decorations in the Mall and Market Square.
A series of vacant shops on the Hunter Street Mall are set to become galleries, exhibitions and retailers. GPT has also identified space in Market Square that could be used as studio space.
“We are currently working with Renew Newcastle to fill any vacant shops we own that are clean and meet necessary safety codes.
“Our hope is that artists can begin moving in before Christmas,” said Sleet.
Renew Newcastle are very pleased that GPT have offered us the use of their properties. They are one of the largest property owners in the city and their buildings alone will give us the capacity to place dozens exciting projects over the next few months - until their site is redeveloped in 2010.
GPT has also provided us with a building, a former Church in Morgan St from which we hope to be able to run our operations and (hopefully) even an Artists in Residence program in the new year.
While the support from GPT has been outstanding and vital to getting our project off the ground, Renew Newcastle is still keen to work with every other major and minor property owner in Newcastle who may have a space where we can place a project.
The Renew Newcastle web site now features a fantastic interactive map with project profiles in our newly enhanced 
