What is NOTO?
North Topeka started out thriving in the 1800’s. It was the center of the Topeka community and offered a lively downtown business district filled with merchants. However, after a major flood in 1951, the community began to struggle. With a new downtown location growing on the other side of the river, the efforts to rebuild North Topeka were slow at best. For years, buildings sat vacant, gradually falling into a state of disrepair. As other parts of Topeka continued to grow over the decades, North Topeka seemed to be a forgotten land. Recently North Topeka, now bearing the moniker of “NOTO,” has started to emerge as a destination once again, with local artists and organizations working hard on rebuilding NOTO as an arts district. So far, almost 15 artists have bought buildings in NOTO and many businesses and organizations have conducted fundraisers to donate to the community’s growth.