Northup King Building staying in artists' hands following sale

Wall art is featured as part of Art-A-Whirl at the Northrup King Building in Minneapolis. (FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul)

A building in northeast Minneapolis is staying in the hands of local artists.

The Northrup King Building has been sold to Artspace Properties, a locally-based non-profit developer. Their goal is to keep spaces affordable for artists.

The structure was originally built in 1917 and is now home to more than 350 local artists. It's also a highlight every year during Art-A-Whirl.

“Space and artists – they’re always challenged,” said Greg Handberg of Artspace. “Given the amount of development activity happening in northeast Minneapolis, I think that if art space hadn’t been able to acquire this building, it most certainly would have been acquired for redevelopment at a more market rate, which would have required the relocation of those artists, so we’re going to stop that from happening."

The change in ownership is set to happen by the end of the year.