[3] Lowe and a coalition of artists purchased a group of 22 shotgun houses across two blocks that were built in 1930 and, by the 1990s, were in poor condition.

[3] Lisa Gray of the Houston Chronicle said that the houses, originally used as rentals, were "previously ruled by drugs and prostitutes.

"[6][7] Inspired by the work of John T. Biggers,[8] the group used seed money funds from the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts to restore the houses.

Newer low income housing blocks, using designs provided by the Rice Building Workshop, are now a part of the campus.

In addition, several shotgun houses built in the Victorian era, moved there earlier from historically black communities under development, are a part of the campus.

Lisa Gray of the Houston Chronicle said during that year "Driving around, this writer found it's hard to tell where the Row Houses campus begins and ends.