We signed the lease
Today we signed the lease for 9 Lexington Street in Belmont, Massachusetts. After a year of searching for the right space, we found it. The space is real, the address is real, and the buildout starts now.
In the last post, I wrote about the studio we couldn't find — the gap between beginner classes and private studios, and why Firebox is being built to fill it. That post described a concept. This one describes a building.
Why This Space
After a year of searching and looking at several potential spaces, 9 Lexington Street is the one that meets all of our needs. It is in the right neighborhood, has the right layout, and has the right infrastructure for a ceramics studio. It just felt right. The moment I walked in, I could see the studio taking shape. The space is not perfect, but it is perfect for what we need to do.
A ceramics studio cannot go just anywhere. The building needs to handle heavy electrical loads for kilns, support kiln ventilation to the exterior, tolerate water and clay dust in ways that most commercial spaces are not designed for, and provide enough room to separate the different stages of the clay cycle — making, drying, bisque firing, glazing, glaze firing, and storage — without everything colliding in one room.
9 Lexington Street delivers on all of these. The building has the electrical capacity we need. The layout separates making zones from the kiln room, glazing from storage, and teaching from independent practice. There is a street-facing storefront for retail. And there is enough total area — nearly 3,800 square feet — to run structured classes and open studio access simultaneously, without one interfering with the other.
Perhaps most importantly, the space is comfortable. It is not a warehouse or a garage. It is a commercial space that was built for people to work in, and it shows. The ceilings are high, the skylight in the main area shines natural light right in the middle of the studio. The space is warm and welcoming — the kind of place where you want to spend time. Importantly, the space is ADA compliant and accessible.
A space is more than its walls and floors. It is the environment in which people will make, learn, and create. In the next few months and years, my goal is to create a space where community can thrive, and where people can make the work they want to make. 9 Lexington Street is the right place to do that.
The Neighborhood
Waverley Square sits at the intersection of Belmont, Watertown, and Waltham, with direct access from the 73 bus and easy reach from the Commuter Rail. It is a walkable village center with local shops, restaurants, and a residential neighborhood on every side. The kind of place where a pottery studio belongs — close to the people who will use it.
Come for the ceramics, stay for the community.
What Happens Next
The contractor goes in next week. The buildout is intentionally restrained — this is not a gut renovation. The bones of the space are good. The work is focused on the infrastructure a ceramics studio actually needs: kiln ventilation, electrical circuits for two high-draw kilns, sink installation, flooring that can handle water and clay, and lighting appropriate for making and glazing.
Equipment ordering is already underway. Permit drawings are with the architect. And the target opening is October 1, 2026 — ten weeks from today.
Choosing a building is one of the decisions that cannot be undone easily. Most of what follows — the equipment plan, the class schedule, the membership model, the kiln loading system — is shaped by the physical reality of the space. The floor plan is not decoration. It is the operating system.
This is where Firebox is being built. One brick at a time.
Current Stage
Lease Signed · Buildout Begins
9 Lexington Street, Belmont. Opening October 2026.
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