By Brian Dunlap

After 2 months of being closed due to an eviction, the literary and art space in Boyle Heights, Re/Arte, has found a new spot. Founder Viva Padilla said she “is excited” to return to hosting readings, workshops and art exhibits.

Re/Arte was evicted from its location on E. Cesar E. Chavez Ave., a few store fronts down from Other Books, due to an issue with the roof caving in, that the landlady blamed on them. The good news is their new space is larger than their previous location, making it better able to handle big crowds when named authors stop by to read.

To get restarted, Padilla has turned to the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe for help getting back off the ground. Re/Arte plans to use the donations to pay for:

• initial startup costs including deposit, 1st and 2nd month’s rent: $3,500
• pay and install a new hanging sign outside: $350
• purchase a patio set for the outside area: $400
• install shelves and racks: $500
• purchase new books to fill our shelves: $1,000

As a community literary and arts space, Padilla hopes the community will get involved by donating whatever they can. “Every bit helps,” she says on Re/Arte’s GoFundMe page. The intent with the community helping to cover these upfront costs is to ensure that Re/Arte can focus on “maintaining the health and longevity of our collective space to feature even more amazing poets, writers, and artists and continue to build.”

If you are able, you can donate to Re/Arte by clicking here to go their GoFundMe page.