PHOENIX, AZ.- The Phoenix City Council this week unanimously voted in favor of a lease agreement with Advocates for Latin@ Arts and Culture Consortium, Inc. (ALAC), which plans to open a first-of-its-kind Latino cultural center in downtown Phoenix .

The ALAC arts and cultural facility, which has yet to be named, will be housed in a city-owned building at 147 E. Adams Street between First and Second Streets, south of the downtown Hyatt Regency and west of the Phoenix Convention Center .

“ALAC is honored by the confidence demonstrated by the City Council’s unanimous vote and for the opportunity to formalize a partnership with the City of Phoenix ,” said ALAC Board President ErLinda Tórres. “This is a major step towards creating a venue to enrich the lives of the young and the young at heart, in the Valley of the Sun; as what we believe will be an exciting new arts and culture venue.”

Tórres noted that after a formal lease is signed, ALAC plans to launch the first phase of its multi-phased plan to renovate and equip the space in time so it can open for business before the end of the year. The cultural center, Tórres added, will eventually present art exhibits and performances, classes, workshops, seminars, and educational programming year round.

According to city regulations, ALAC representatives cannot receive the keys to the facility until 30 days after the lease is signed. ALAC then has between 90 and 120 days to make “tenant improvements” and other modifications to the property, all of which must be approved by Phoenix inspectors and other city officials.

“I’m very excited that ALAC received the lease,” said Phoenix Deputy City Manager Ruth Osuna, “and I’m grateful for the City Council’s support, but now the real work begins in terms of growing the center and making sure it’s a success.”

Phoenix City Council Member Michael Nowakowski, a major supporter of ALAC’s two-year effort to open a cultural center, said, “This center will be a shining example of the rich diversity of arts that the Hispanic community has long contributed to Arizona . It will be a reminder that Latino culture and Arizona culture have been one in the same since the earliest days of what we now know as Arizona .”

ALAC eventually plans to open a state-of-the-art $10 million arts and culture center in Phoenix .