A longtime Downtown Summerville landmark is becoming part of a growing arts campus — bringing new creative space to a building that has already played a role in the town’s story for more than a century.

One of Downtown Summerville’s most recognizable buildings is getting a new chapter.

Public Works Art Center has purchased 129 W. Richardson Avenue, the historic former Cauthen’s Hardware building next door to the organization’s current home at 135 W. Richardson Avenue.

Public Works now refers to the two properties together as the Public Works Arts Campus, with each building designed to serve a slightly different part of Summerville’s creative community. Its existing building at 135 W. Richardson houses galleries, classrooms and artist studios, while space at 129 W. Richardson is being developed for artisan studios geared toward makers who create handcrafted goods for sale.

In announcing the purchase, Public Works said the new building will also include a free community art table sponsored this year by the Junior Service League of Summerville, plus a music, performance and community gathering space being developed in partnership with Community Music Collective. The South Carolina Arts Commission’s Lowcountry Arts Hub will have a resource area in the building for artists, art teachers and arts organizations from 10 counties.

Public Works said it currently hopes to open the expanded space in early November, while noting that the timing could move earlier or later.

A Project That Has Been Taking Shape

The expansion didn’t happen overnight.

During a special Summerville Town Council meeting on January 28, Public Works Art Center Executive Director Jana Riley presented a request for $500,000 in hospitality or accommodations tax funding to help pay for renovations and repairs to what Town meeting minutes called the “old Cauthen’s building.”

Those same minutes noted that Public Works was in the process of purchasing the property. The organization has now publicly confirmed that the purchase is complete.

Public Works’ own website identifies both 129 and 135 W. Richardson Avenue as part of its Arts Campus, giving the organization additional room to expand its role as a creative hub in the heart of downtown.

More Than a Century of Downtown History

For longtime Summerville residents, 129 W. Richardson Avenue is much more than another downtown address.

The building is best known to many as the longtime home of People, Places & Quilts, but its story reaches back even further.

People, Places & Quilts says it opened in 1990 inside the old Cauthen’s Hardware building, initially selling folk art and antique quilts alongside several other businesses operating in the building. Over time, the business grew into the fabric and quilting destination generations of customers have come to know.

Public Works has now confirmed that People, Places & Quilts will remain open inside the building. Owner Diane Frankenberger and her shop have called the property home for the past 36 years.

And there’s an interesting connection between People, Places & Quilts and the arts center now expanding into the property.

A Full-Circle Moment for Public Works

Public Works Art Center itself can trace part of its origin back to People, Places & Quilts owner Diane Frankenberger.

According to Public Works, Frankenberger was reading about an art gallery housed inside an old fire station in McClellanville in 2018 when she began thinking about the vacant building next door to her shop in Downtown Summerville.

She shared the idea with local art teacher Kevin Morrissey, and the conversation eventually grew into the organization that became Public Works Art Center.

A founding board was assembled later that year, the former Commissioners of Public Works building was renovated during 2019, and Public Works Art Center opened in 2020.

Now, several years later, the art center that began next door to People, Places & Quilts is expanding into the Cauthen’s building itself — while the quilt shop remains part of the building’s next chapter.

It’s a fitting bit of symmetry for two places whose histories have been connected almost from the beginning.

Summerville’s Role in the Lowcountry Arts Community Is Growing Too

The physical expansion comes as Public Works takes on a larger regional role.

The South Carolina Arts Commission has named Public Works Art Center its Lowcountry Arts Hub partner, serving a 10-county region that includes Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties, along with Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties.

That designation puts a Downtown Summerville organization at the center of an effort to connect artists, organizations and arts resources across a large portion of the Lowcountry.

Public Works already offers free gallery admission, exhibitions, classes, camps, events, pottery facilities and studio space from its downtown location. The addition of 129 W. Richardson gives the organization room to continue growing those opportunities.

Another Chapter for a Familiar Downtown Building

Downtown Summerville has changed plenty over the years, but buildings like the old Cauthen’s Hardware store carry pieces of those earlier chapters with them.

This one has housed hardware, small businesses, fabric, quilts and generations of downtown shoppers.

Now, it’s preparing to add artists, makers, performances and creative entrepreneurs to the list — with People, Places & Quilts continuing to welcome customers inside.

And considering that an idea from the owner of the quilt shop inside that building helped inspire Public Works Art Center in the first place, the organization’s expansion next door feels a little like coming full circle.

Sources: Public Works Art Center, South Carolina Arts Commission, Town of Summerville meeting records and People, Places & Quilts.