Boulder's Dairy Arts Center Owns Its Home

A New Chapter for the Dairy Arts Center

After more than two decades under city ownership, the Dairy Arts Center has reclaimed its building from the city of Boulder. This marks a significant milestone for the nonprofit organization that has dedicated years to programming, fundraising, and maintaining the space within its walls.

The City Council approved the sale on August 7, authorizing the city manager to transfer ownership of the building at 2590 Walnut St. to the organization that operates the Dairy. According to council agenda materials, this decision resolved an arrangement that began in 2000 when the city stepped in to keep the arts center operational during a financially challenging period. The city ended up holding the deed longer than anticipated.

The building’s transformation into an arts hub is now so familiar that it can be easy to forget what it was like when it first opened over 50 years ago.

Constructed in 1970, the structure originally served as the Watts-Hardy Dairy, processing milk for Boulder households before shutting down in the 1980s. When the operation closed, a group of local artists saw potential where others saw a vacant industrial shell. They raised money, organized community support, and in the early 1990s, began converting the space into a multipurpose arts center.

The Dairy purchased the building in 1995, but the costs of renovations and daily operations soon became overwhelming. By the end of the decade, mortgage payments became difficult to sustain, leading the organization to request assistance. In April 2000, the city stepped in, assumed ownership, and leased the building back to the nonprofit.

This move was intended as a temporary solution, but it stretched across 25 years, encompassing economic shifts, major capital projects, and the challenges of a global pandemic.

Melissa Fathman, executive director of the Dairy Arts Center, said regaining ownership brings the organization back to where it started.

“To once again own our building is to reclaim that founding vision in the fullest sense,” Fathman said in a statement.

She added in a comment to the Daily Camera, “We will continue to operate as we always have, by providing theatrical spaces for our community. Owning the building will allow us to plan ahead and fundraise for major capital upgrades in the future.”

According to city documents, the total transaction value of the sale is $11,689,086, with the Dairy paying $1.5 million in cash at closing. The remaining balance reflects credits for $8,689,086 in past capital improvements made by the organization, along with a $1.5 million city credit intended to offset upcoming roof and HVAC replacement costs.

The sale includes several conditions. A five-year covenant in the deed requires the property to continue operating as a center for the arts, and the city will retain rights of first offer and first refusal should the building be sold again. With the transfer of ownership, the city will also relinquish its appointed seat on the Dairy’s board of directors.

City staff noted in the council packet that selling the property reduces Boulder’s unfunded maintenance liabilities and aligns with the city’s Facilities Plan, which prioritizes directing limited resources toward buildings used for core municipal services. The transaction is expected to generate $1.5 million in city revenue in 2025 and remove the city’s responsibility for major repairs at the site, including work on the roof and HVAC system.

Today, the Dairy Arts Center supports more than 100 local arts organizations each year and hosts more than 1,000 performances, parties, exhibitions, and screenings, drawing more than 200,000 visitors annually across its theaters, galleries, and the Boedecker Cinema.

Board Chair Lisa Albright said ownership provides stability for the artists and organizations that rely on the space.

“The Dairy stands today because visionary artists, generous citizens and a supportive city each saw potential in this building,” Albright said.

After decades of leases, extensions, and stopgap solutions, the sale puts the building back in the hands of the organization that has defined its second act, transforming a milk-processing plant into one of Boulder’s most active cultural addresses.