BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Most musicians will tell you that almost as important as the instrument they play is the location they can rehearse in without the police being called.
If those musicians lived in Allston-Brighton, many may fondly remember the Sound Museum, a beloved no-frills space on North Beacon Street in Allston.
Now, the public is getting a small glimpse at what a future music space in the neighborhood would look like.
The original Sound Museum building was a victim of the post-pandemic lab space boom.
Real estate investor IQHQ bought the site, demolished it, and is converting it into biotech and lab space.
Ami Bennitt of the Art Stays Here Coalition said losing that location was a big blow to at least 700 local musicians and the local arts scene. "It was actually one of the most heartbreaking low points in so many people's lives, including mine," she said.
Musicians and artists were scattered to all parts of the Greater Boston area, including a temporary space inside The Record Co. at 55 Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester.
As a way to temper the community burden, the developer of the original Sound Museum building gave the City of Boston a property in Brighton, 290 N. Beacon St., to build another rehearsal space for musicians that they eventually can return to.
The plans include at least 40,000 square feet of rehearsal space, state-of-the-art studios, and even the possibility of an additional 30,000 square feet to be used for other art forms.
The plan is to merge the new space with an abutting Boston Housing Authority project, and build a large music rehearsal complex on the site with at least 60 apartment units.
Bennitt, who is closely involved in the project, estimated that the building is about two years from even getting started.
But, she said the musicians who were displaced by the Sound Museum's closure will get first dibs on rehearsal space in the new building.
WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports.