Leominster dance studio loaned $100K for buildout

PHOTO | COURTESY NORTH CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS DEVELOPMENT CORP. (From left) Norman Vigeant, vice president of lending at the North Central Massachusetts Development Corp.; Kelly Pelkey, co-owner of MK Dance; Moriah Kelly-Hildreth, co-owner of MK Dance; and Sandie Cataldo, economic development manager at the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce.

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By Isabel Tehan

The North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. in Fitchburg loaned $100,000 loan to MK Dance Center in Leominster. The owners will use the funds to renovate and build out their new space at Gateway Business Center at 435 Lancaster St.

MK Dance employs two full-time employees and six part-time dance instructors, according to a Tuesday press release from NCMDC.

Owners Kelly Pelkey and Moriah Kelly-Hildreth opened MK Dance Center in 2013 and then relocated to Gateway Center, according to the release. The co-owners met one another at their local dance studio in childhood.

“We have both loved to dance from an early age, and this funding affords us the opportunity to bring our passion of dance to more youth and the young at heart in our community,” said Pelkey.

The center offers ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, and breakdancing classes for dancers aged two to adult.

The lending arm of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce, the NCMDC can provide loans to small businesses up to $250,000 through its relationship with the U.S. Small Business Administration.