PHOTO/BRAD KANE
Laura Marotta (left) and Stacy Lord, cofounders of Creative Hub Worcester, will take over as co-directors of stART on the Street.
January 24, 2024
Long-awaited Creative Hub Worcester $10M project to break ground in spring
Image | Courtesy of Creative Hub Worcester
A rendering of Creative Hub Community Arts Center, which is expected to open sometime in 2025.
A $10-million historical renovation project at the former site of the Ionic Ave Boys Club at 2 Ionic Ave. in Worcester is set to begin in the late spring, with the opening of the nonprofit Creative Hub Community Arts Center expected in 2025.
“After nine long years and the support of an incredible team of heroes, we are now on the verge of revitalizing this historic building and bringing it back to life as a vibrant community arts center,” Stacy Lord, art educator and co-founder of Creative Hub Worcester, said in a press release. “It's exciting to know that Creative Hub will be able to continue to provide creative outlets, opportunities, and platforms to artists and makers, and especially to the community.”
Amenities at the new community center will include an artisan’s market, incubator studios, and event space for up to 200 people, according to a press release issued by Creative Hub Worcester on Monday, revitalizing a space left unused since the Boys Club closed its doors in 2006.
"Lamoureux Pagano Associates, C.E. Floyd, the Harding Green Development Group, and our project team have been working incredibly hard over the past year to ensure we see this vision to fruition,” Laura Marotta, executive director and co-founder of Creative Hub Worcester, said in the release. “We're very excited to announce that construction will begin in the spring of this year, and we expect to be open approximately 12 months from breaking ground.”
Creative Hub first launched in July 2016 with the mission of renovating the building, according to the nonprofit’s website. The space was purchased in 2017 by the Arts and Business Council of Greater Boston, a Boston nonprofit. Creative Hub purchased the building from the Arts and Business Council in May for a price of $2.25 million, according to City of Worcester property records.
The project has received a number of grants in the time since it was first announced, including a $200,000 grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council in May.
In addition to the artisan’s market, incubator studios, and event space, the arts center will also include art-making experiences and a classroom that can be utilized for arts education and workshops. The space is expected to open sometime in 2025.
The three-story brick building was built in 1914 and contains 25,700 square feet of usable area, according to City of Worcester property records.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
Anonymous
January 26, 2024
Great for the Worcester's artist community.
Anonymous
January 25, 2024
Hahaha, where are you all going to park ?
2 Comments