Susie Lowe-Stockwell, executive director of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, has visions of permanent gallery space, rotating exhibits, and classes on pottery and glassblowing. Her visions could be fulfilled if the league is successful in its plans to buy the ground floor of a proposed office building on South Main Street.

The league has paid developer Steve Duprey $1 for the option to buy a floor in his new development, which would be on the site of the Sanel Block, across from the Capitol Center for the Arts.

The league "is one of those iconic institutions that's part and parcel of the definition of what makes New Hampshire New Hampshire," Duprey said. "This gives them the opportunity for critically needed modernization and expansion, and it will allow them to serve their craftsmen, many of whom make modest incomes. It's great for the project and the neighborhood."

The league's new space would be 8,000 to 12,000 square feet. Part of that would be a gallery large enough to hold the league's permanent collection of crafts. The organization has 300 lots of artwork - some lots include several pieces by a single artist. Some of the pieces predate the league, which was founded in 1932. For now, the collection is in storage because there is no room to display it.

In addition to the permanent display, there would be a rotating gallery, similar to the current space at 205 N. Main St., with three or four shows a year. Unlike the current building, there would also be studio space for workshops ranging from after-school classes for children to master classes for adults.

The league's library could be enhanced, and there could be some high-tech resource space, with computers for artists to learn programs such as Photoshop.

There would be office space for the seven staff members and warehouse space where gallery managers and artists could pick up or drop off art.

Duprey hopes to start construction by late September, and tenants would be able to move in by September 2010. When Duprey first announced his plan earlier this month, he said it had a one in five chance of going forward. The office building could potentially have up to six floors of office space, and Duprey still needs to get commitments from two tenants, who would buy the space. He also needs to get city approvals and obtain financing.

Yesterday, he said there was a 50 percent chance the project would come to fruition.

Negotiations with two users are "in progress," Duprey said. Financing is also progressing. The city planning board has recommended that the city council rezone the land, which would make it easier for Duprey to get the approvals he needs to build.

Duprey said some issues have come up - for example, discovery of a right-of-way that belonged to the state almost a century ago. But he is optimistic.

"There are still myriad potential problems that can sink one of these ideas, but we're making great progress in a short time," he said.

The league, which has 786 juried members and seven retail galleries, has been searching for a new headquarters for decades. Since Lowe-Stockwell arrived in 1997, she said, the organization has looked at sites in Tilton, Franklin, Henniker and Concord.

Its current gallery in Concord is part of a farmhouse complex built in 1802. The old ballroom on the top floor of the house has been converted to office space - one office is cordoned off by a temporary wall, the finance department is on what used to be a porch, and the whole area gets cold in the winter, Lowe-Stockwell said. Sometimes, chipmunks climb through holes that used to be heat pipes.

The league bought the building for $1 in 1946. In its basement, Vivika Heino taught Otto Heino to make pottery. They would eventually become a renowned husband-and-wife team of artists and teachers. Today, the unfinished basement has become unusable with age. (next page »)