Toast of the Town … We’re in the jailhouse now

By Charles Sercombe
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since Hamtramck’s own art collective, Hatch, took over the old police station.
Seems like just a few years ago that a group of artists with a vision and plan to transform the police station into an art gallery and artists’ studios.
Trust us, some of the powers-that-be at the time had a hard time wrapping their heads around the concept.
Oh, if those walls in the old police station could talk. Toast spent many years at the station gathering the latest police log information, and making the rounds visiting detectives on the second floor.
But that was back in the day, when information wasn’t strictly monitored and the press had easy access. That tightening-up-on of information has only become more so as the years have gone by.
This isn’t the time and place to recount the ugly episodes Toast witnessed there, nor the horror stories we’ve heard about having the unfortunate luck of spending a weekend in the department’s lockup.
It was medieval, if you catch the drift.
Getting permission to sell the building to the Hatch collective was no easy process, and some city officials preferred the notion of putting the building on the market.
But, thankfully, cooler heads prevailed, and the transfer of ownership to the non-profit group was approved.
Anyway, last Saturday was the 20th anniversary celebration for Hatch, and the gallery was packed shoulder-to-shoulder.
We ran into head honcho Chris Schneider, and invited him to say a few words on how that 20-year journey evolved, plus whatever else he wanted to talk about.
He had plenty to spill about the project — and more.
Let’s let Chris tell the tale:
“At the very beginning, back in 2005, I was serving on the Hamtramck Beautification Committee. My responsibility was to do shows of local artists in City Hall. Eric Tungate, the city’s Economic Development Director, approached me about creating an organization for artists.
“At the time, there were a lot of artists living in the area but no dedicated art spaces or organizations. I asked several of the artists I had shown at city hall to get together and discuss possibilities. Among them were Suzanne Baumann, Sean Bieri, and Matt Feazell, all of whom lived in Hamtramck.
“In 2006, after several meetings, we decided to create an artist collective called Hatch. It had a membership, and with members we put on art festivals in town, created exhibitions in make-shift spaces, and offered art workshops to people of all ages. We applied for non-profit status, and received it.
“In 2009, Tungate approached Hatch and offered to sell us one of the many city-owned properties in town if we promised to convert it into an art center, pending city council approval.
“At the time, a very high percentage of properties in Hamtramck were abandoned and owned by the government due to tax defaults. They were all in tremendous disrepair, but we decided the old police station would make for an intriguing new home. We presented our plans to city council and they approved it unanimously, at first renting it to us and then deciding to sell it.
“It took us three years of mostly volunteer work to restore the building to the point of it being usable, (but finally), in 2012, we opened it to the public with exhibitions, studios, and workshops. Since then, Hatch has eliminated our membership requirement so that it would be easier for anyone interested to be involved.”
The gallery wasn’t the only project that Hatch became involved in.
“In 2016, following the death of Dmytro Szylak, Hatch purchased Hamtramck Disneyland to save it from destruction. In the 10 years since, we have relied on volunteer help to rebuild and grow the installation in hopes of bringing this tourist attraction back to its past glory. Every year it gets closer and closer to that goal as it draws visitors from all over the world and is featured in numerous travel guides,” Schneider said.
Back to the gallery:
“Currently, Hatch has 19 artist renters, five who live in apartments at Hamtramck Disneyland, and 14 who rent studio space at Hatch Gallery. Along with donations, this covers the cost of operation — we do not rely on grants or federal funding, although we have received several one-time grants.
“Hatch is a true grassroots organization, run primarily by volunteers with a board of directors who are artists themselves, including Baumann, Bieri, and Feazell who have helped run this from the very beginning.”
And what are the future plans?
“We still have the energy to keep growing. Many people are involved in Hatch now, and each person comes brimming with ideas. We are hoping to establish a book-publishing arm, focusing on art and comics,” Schneider said.
“We would like to greatly expand public programming, including art workshops, performances, and lectures. We would like to bring back our artist residency program at Hamtramck Disneyland, which brought artists from all over the world until it had to be closed due to the (pandemic).
“We would like to see Hamtramck Disneyland become ever-more grand, a true spectacle with lights and lots more moving parts. Immediately, though, we would like to finally finish restoring the building, replacing all the windows, making the entrance ADA-compliant, and repairing our crumbling back wall.”
Winding it up, Schneider added:
“Currently, Hatch shows artwork in three different spaces: the Hatch Gallery, The Jail Cell (a real jail cell now used for installation art), and Cafe 1923.
“We have monthly events including figure drawing, board game night, movie night, and synth night. We offer occasional drop-in art workshops open to anyone. Hamtramck Disneyland is outdoors and can be experienced any time: located at 12087 Klinger, but best seen from the alleyway.
“We also help bring big events to Hamtramck, being the fiscal sponsor to the Hamtramck Labor Day Festival, and have partnered with The Discovery Channel, the Detroit Pistons, Detroit City Football Club, the Knight Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, and others to host public one-time events.”
Haven’t checked out the gallery yet? Be sure to look them up online for their public hours and any other information at: hatchart.org.
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Posted April 17, 2026