Owner Says Future of Artspace Gallery Is in Jeopardy

The future looks grim for Artspace Gallery, one of the San Fernando Valley’s few spaces dedicated to showcasing the work of local painters and potters.

A.H. Warner Center Properties, the owner of the building on Oxnard Street, gave Artspace a 30-day notice to vacate on May 1.

The Woodland Hills gallery will leave its 2,000-square-foot ground-floor space--which it has occupied rent-free for more than eight years--and move to a smaller space one floor up.

Dave Garcia, general manager for A.H. Warner, insisted that Artspace is not being kicked out of the building but is only being asked to cooperate with the needs of the owner.

But Ross Hopkins, the gallery’s manager, said his conversations with the owners have led him to understand that the relocation will be temporary. When Warner and its management company, Voit Cos., find a paying tenant for the new space, Artspace will be asked to leave, Hopkins said.

Since the new lease is month to month, Artspace’s future appears to be unstable at best, Hopkins said.