ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — A planned creative campus in Asheville’s River Arts District has landed more than $2.1 million in tourism-tax funding, adding a significant source of public money to a project aimed at creating affordable, flood-safe space for artists.

The Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority approved $2,124,540 Wednesday for the RAD Creative Campus, a proposed two-building development on Lyman Street.

The money, awarded through the TDA’s Legacy Investment From Tourism, or LIFT, fund, is specifically for the first building at 123 Lyman St.

The award comes with a condition: The RADA Foundation must close on the property by Dec. 15, 2027. If that doesn’t happen, the money will return to the LIFT fund.

The TDA lists a construction timeline of September 2027 through October 2028 for the first building.

A new ‘front door’ to the district

The first building is planned as a new entry point for visitors to the River Arts District.

Tiffany Thacker, the TDA’s vice president of partnership and destination management, told the board it would become “the front door to the district,” with a permanent River Arts District welcome center along with retail, exhibition and flexible-use space.

A second building — 135 Lyman St. — is planned for affordable artist studios, classrooms, creative offices and shared production space.

The two former industrial buildings total about 36,000 square feet and sit above the River Arts District floodplain, an important part of the project’s design after Tropical Storm Helene devastated lower-lying portions of the district in September 2024.

The RADA Foundation also envisions shared equipment, workforce development programs and public events at the campus.

The project remains in the early conceptual stage.

Plans took on new urgency after Helene

828newsNOW first reported on the Creative Campus in September, when RADA Foundation Executive Director Kimberly Self Hundertmark described plans for a facility intended to give artists more stable and affordable space in the district.

Hundertmark estimated the overall project could cost between $10 million and $20 million.

Plans for the campus took on greater urgency after Helene damaged or destroyed studios across the River Arts District and disrupted business for artists whose studios survived.

The foundation has also discussed using the campus as a resilience hub during future emergencies, with access to power, supplies and other resources.

The $2.1 million TDA award applies only to the first building. The RADA Foundation is pursuing additional public and private support for the larger project.

Before work can move ahead with the tourism funding, however, the foundation has to complete the property purchase.

That gives the project its next firm deadline: Dec. 15, 2027.