Imagine What’s Possible

After completing a comprehensive feasibility study in 2023, we determined that demolishing our existing facility and rebuilding to meet the Museum’s operational needs would be prohibitively expensive. In contrast, repurposing an existing structure will cost about half as much as new construction, while also revitalizing a historic building in the heart of downtown.

This adaptive reuse approach will also significantly reduce the project’s carbon footprint, preserve the character and scale of the historic downtown, and deliver a fully ADA-accessible, energy-efficient facility designed with the flexibility to meet future needs.

SLOMA’s Expansion Campaign consists of two distinct phases.

Phase I: Construction

• Over 5,000 square feet of exhibition space (3x our current exhibition space)
• Climate-controlled galleries, artwork storage, and preparation space
• Flexible multi-use spaces and a creekside patio perfect for event rentals, community celebrations, and expanded public programming
• Fully accessible public and staff spaces
• Reimagining 1010 Broad into a dedicated space for arts education for kids and adults, more than doubling our current capacity

Phase II: Purchase & Endowment

• Purchasing our new building
• Establishing an endowment for sustaining SLOMA’s future

SLOMA’s current facility at 1010 Broad Street will be retained and become a dedicated Education Center, allowing the reintroduction of past youth programs like summer camps and after-school classes, as well as offering expanded youth and adult programming to meet the growing needs of San Luis Obispo County. We project the new dedicated space will more than double our capacity for educational programming for kids and adults alike.

The space will continue to host rotating murals and curated exhibitions, including exhibitions featuring the work of those participating in our art classes, linking SLOMA’s two facilities programmatically and creating a dynamic Cultural Corridor campus.

Across the nation, libraries and museums are emerging as vital anchors of community life, providing the social infrastructure that helps people connect, learn, and imagine together. They invigorate downtowns, fuel local economies, and give residents a sense of belonging that digital life cannot replace. SLOMA’s new home on Higuera will have a positive impact on our community, particularly on Downtown SLO:

• In a sea of restaurants and retail stores, the museum would help rebalance Downtown SLO, introducing a spark of creativity to the economic core and giving residents and visitors a reason to visit downtown year-round
• SLOMA has the potential to significantly add to SLO County public finances with increased visibility and visitor traffic. In 2024, arts and culture visitor activity contributed more than $6.7M in transient occupancy taxes and $1.5M in local sales taxes (per the 2025 Economic Impact of Arts & Culture Report).
• Research from Americans for the Arts shows arts patrons spend an additional $25–$70 per visit on local food, retail, and lodging. With a projected annual attendance of nearly 110,000, SLOMA is poised to have a positive impact on our retail neighbors.
• The museum’s presence in the heart of Downtown SLO can promote the cultural scene, attract a wider demographic of shoppers and visitors, and further realize the long-held downtown development plan, in concert with our cultural corridor partners
• The expanded museum will advance the City of SLO’s Major Goals (FY 2025–27) for Cultural Vitality; Economic Resilience; and Fiscal Sustainability; and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  

At our new home on Higuera, SLOMA will be well poised to serve as a visible and accessible portal into SLO’s burgeoning arts and cultural corridor, infusing the economic vitality of arts and culture tourism into the core of Downtown SLO.

Yes! Interested parties can refer to our Cafe RFP document and submit a proposal by mid-July 2026. Questions? Please contact Steph Jasson, Director of Impact & Resource Development.

Our mission will not change: we will always be a place for our community to come and be inspired, to create, and to find deeper insight and connection. Expanding SLOMA means even more of the services and programs you’ve grown to love, including:

• More amazing exhibitions featuring visuals artists from around the corner and around the world
• More free public art programs
• Bringing back our summer art camps for kids
• Hosting art classes and workshops for patrons of all ages to find their artistic voice
• Expanded programming to county-wide audiences
• A new, central space for the community to gather and share their love of art

Thanks to early leadership gifts and multi-year pledges, we’re getting closer and closer to our Phase 1 goal!

If you’re interested in helping us create a place to find joy and connection in ways only the arts can inspire, contact SLOMA’s Executive Director, Leann Standish, at lstandish@sloma.org or call us at (805) 543-8562.

Yes! Naming opportunities can be found here.

SLOMA is proud to partner with RRM Design Group, NK Builders, BMA Mechanical, and Thoma Electric to bring this project to life. We want to give extra special thanks to our Volunteer Campaign Task Force:

Clint Pearce, Task Force Chair
Ermina Karim
Erik Justesen
Howard Carroll
Beth Marino
Tim Tillman
Leann Standish
Emma Saperstein