For the past decade, Linda Grimes, the executive director of the San Pedro Waterfront Arts District, has been working to promote art in San Pedro.

“[The mission] is to support, advocate and promote San Pedro art and artists in all genres,” Grimes says. “We celebrate diversity and inspire appreciation of cultural and artistic expression. We are focused on generating new opportunities to support local artists and nurturing the cultural roots of San Pedro through our programming and promotions.”

The San Pedro Waterfront Arts District was born in the wake of a partnership in 2009 among the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce and local artists and organizations to advance the arts in San Pedro. The original partnership used a Community Redevelopment Authority grant, but when it ended three years later, the partnership evolved into the next phase: the San Pedro Waterfront Arts District. Grimes came onboard as the managing director to further the mission.

For Grimes, the Waterfront Arts District nonprofit was the opportunity she had been waiting for to use her long history of corporate marketing expertise to give back to the community. She also understood the need for an organization promoting local art. Grimes had previously served as the executive director of the local Golden State Pops Orchestra (GSPO), and there she realized how important it was to give art a place in the community.

“It was apparent to me that the arts needed to have their own place of pride in San Pedro,” Grimes says. “And so when I left GSPO, and this opportunity came about, I thought it was a way to pay it forward and give back and create a legacy in San Pedro, particularly in the arena of large-scale public art.”

The Waterfront Arts District has left its mark across San Pedro, including several notable murals such as “La Pincoya en El Norte” on the Los Angeles Maritime Institute building and the Siren’s Mural on 7th Street. They also have painted DOT boxes across the city.

Grimes says that she is also proud of their efforts to make art accessible for all. They have done an arts appreciation series at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, and even have arts programs in local schools. They launched a program at the Port of Los Angeles High School with a teaching artist to provide students with augmented reality education, which includes graphic design, animation and more technological elements of art. Grimes views this education as an essential part of the Waterfront Arts District’s mission.

“We live in a community where not everybody gets arts education as part of their general education,” Grimes says. “And going to an art museum or a play or a ballet is not something that people really do on their own, so putting out art out on the streets gives people a chance to enjoy art without doing any of those things, like going to an art gallery.”

However, it has not always been an easy road. As with most nonprofits, Grimes has faced challenges with acquiring enough funding to sustain the organization and its growth. For much of the nonprofit’s existence, Grimes has had to spearhead the effort without many other staff members. However, the pandemic shutdown gave them time to apply for and receive more foundational grants to allow for more staff and funding.

As the organization plows ahead, Grimes is excited to add more public art around San Pedro to their portfolio and to continue their mission of arts education, especially for young people.

“We are facing the ‘G word’ — gentrification — and it's important to support artists so that they can continue to thrive and promote what they do here,” Grimes says. “This area has been a naturally occurring arts district in San Pedro since the ’30s and ’40s, and there's a lot of development going on here. We don't want that to make it unaffordable for artists to be here and to perform here. So we're concerned that because of all the development they might get priced out.”

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