CREATE
Community Real Estate—Arts to Equity: Building financial and real estate readiness for community-rooted arts organizations
What Is CREATE?
CREATE (Community Real Estate – Arts to Equity) is a two-year cohort program that helps arts and culture organizations build long-term financial resilience and real estate readiness.
Arts organizations strengthen local communities—activating storefronts, creating cultural connection, and contributing to neighborhood vitality and economic development. Yet many face rising rents, unstable leases, limited capital, and minimal access to tailored financial or real estate advising.
CREATE addresses these challenges with a structured learning and support program that brings together financial management, real estate readiness, and peer learning so arts organizations can secure, co-own, or sustain community-centered arts facilities.
The program is expected to run from early 2026 through 2027.
Applications Now Open
CREATE brings together organizations committed to sustaining arts spaces and strengthening local communities. We invite eligible groups to take the next step and apply. Applications are due January 15, 2026.
Who is CREATE for?
CREATE is designed for community-rooted arts and culture organizations, especially those led by and serving underinvested and low-income communities.
To be eligible, organizations must be located in one of the following counties or the city of Fresno:
- Sonoma
- Alameda
- Contra Costa
- Marin
- Napa
- San Francisco
- San Mateo
- Santa Clara
- Santa Cruz
- Solano
What to Expect
CREATE brings together cohort learning, peer connection, and individualized advising to help organizations strengthen both their financial foundation and their long-term space strategies.
The curriculum is organized into three tracks—organizational financial management, ownership and preservation, and multi-nonprofit centers—and includes the following components:
Virtual and In-Person Learning Sessions
Participate in a series of workshops and trainings focused on financial management, real estate basics, and long-term space planning.
Peer-to-Peer Connection
Join a cohort of arts and culture organizations and share strategies, lessons learned, and creative approaches to sustaining community arts spaces.
Technical assistance
Explore your organization’s specific needs and real estate goals through one-on-one support from Community Vision’s team.
Program Outcomes
By the end of the program, participants will have:
- Strengthened their financial infrastructure and decision-making capacity
- Developed a long-term space strategy grounded in their mission and community
- Positioned themselves to secure, co-own, or sustain community-centered arts facilities
Apply Now
If you’re working toward long-term stability for your arts space, we encourage you to apply and grow alongside a cohort of peers.
Applications for CREATE are due January 15, 2026.
Questions?
For questions about the program, please contact Amanda Bornstein at abornstein@communityvisionca.org or 415-392-8215 x 329.
For questions about the application, please contact Sarah Schwid at sschwid@communityvisionca.org or 415-392-8215 x 369.
