WELCOME TO ARBUTUS FOLK SCHOOL

Important Announcement:

After 10 years of offering blacksmithing classes with local artist Kelly Rigg, we will no longer be able to offer these classes for the community, and we wanted to share why.

Kelly has operated his blacksmithing and metal fabricating business for the last 15 years. He started in his garage, then rented a small corner of the shop on Rich Road, then grew into the whole space for the last 8 years. He makes all kinds of beautiful and useful items, working with local builders, businesses, and individuals who recognize the quality and artistry of his work, booking projects up to a year out due to high demand. Some of his projects are so massive, he moves them around with a fork lift! He is one of the most successful, kind, and energetic artists we know, and we are so lucky to have someone this creative and skillful in our community.

Once a month, when it’s not too hot, Kelly pushes his normal equipment aside and sets up his shop as a classroom. Student forges are wheeled into the middle and Kelly spends the day teaching blacksmithing classes, something he has done since the beginning of Arbutus Folk School. He is not only a skilled blacksmith, but an inspiring teacher as well. So many students have come to his shop and flourished with his help, experiencing so much joy and pride in this intense creative process. It has been a pleasure to work with him and an honor to know he is making time and space for beginner students in his busy shop; he tells us constantly how much he enjoys teaching, and it shows.

Kelly rents his shop space and it was recently sold to new owners, an out of state holdings firm. Under the new lease they have presented him, his rent will more than double. The new lease is “triple net,” which means that the tenant, not the owner, carries the entire financial burden of the property. This includes all property taxes, building maintenance, and insurance. If something goes wrong on the property, it’s the tenant’s job to fix it, at any cost, on top of the rent. There is no way any small arts business can survive these conditions.

Kelly has been searching for alternative spaces in the area, but found nothing near his budget. Triple net leases, enforced by out-of-state and sometimes international holdings groups, have become more common for commercial properties across the region. There is no way for him to continue his business without access to the kind of unique and affordable industrial space he has been creatively using for so many years. Over the next few months, he will be liquidating his machinery and turning down jobs. And like that, a critical part of our creative community disappears.

All the blacksmithing classes we had scheduled to kick off in the fall are now canceled. But Kelly is going to keep the student forges, even as he sells the rest of his equipment. The hope is that, even if he can’t continue his business as it has been, he could downsize to a smaller and more affordable location that would allow him to continue teaching and doing smaller projects. He just needs to find a space.

If you know of any opportunities, please contact Kelly at kelly@olymetal.com. He is hoping for ~1000sf at ~$1/sf in the South Sound region, which may not exist. But we hope putting the word out here will help him find it, if it does. We appreciate your patience as we hope to offer blacksmithing classes again in the future.

Thank you for your support,

Hillary Tully, Executive Director
Arbutus Folk School Board of Directors