AMESBURY – The Amesbury Cultural Council is breathing new life into the renovated Amesbury Cultural Center this spring.
The center, at 37 Millyard, is owned by the city, and has been unused for over a decade.
William Donohue, Communications Director for the City of Amesbury, said the city spent approximately $200,000 from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to update the Cultural Center.
“Our distribution of ARPA funds was intentional in addressing populations disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, artists and independent creatives being one of them. We worked with the Cultural Council, the Public Library and the condo association to address the inadequacies of the space that had largely contributed to it being unused for over 10 years. We were able to update the lighting, create a secure archival space for the library, and add acoustic ceiling materials, in addition to a reception desk and fresh coat of paint,” he said.
Donohue said the updates to the Cultural Center also correspond to the IAMesbury 2030 Master Plan, which was created to chart “the course for sustainable growth, community development, and enhanced quality of life,” in the future, the city’s website said.
“These updates make the space user ready for activation that aligns with goals in the IAMesbury 2030 Master Plan and with the deed restriction for arts history and cultural programming. The space’s ownership and use are defined in the master deed,” he said.
The Cultural Council became involved with the Cultural Center after an inquisition from Mayor Kassandra Gove, Bonnie Brady, council member and head of the council’s Cultural Center Subcommittee said.
“In the fall of 2025, the mayor asked the Cultural Council if we would sort of take charge of activating the center. Since the renovation was complete, the facility just needed a few accommodations for accessibility. And once those were complete, they wanted the space to be launched, basically as a hub for cultural activities,” she said.
After agreeing, the council got to work, creating a group to focus on the Cultural Center and brainstorm how the space could be used.
“We formed a subcommittee of the council, five of us, and we’ve been focusing on first, facility issues. We had to make the bathrooms accessible, that was one issue, we solved that. So, basically, now what we’ve been working on is a vision and a proposal back to the mayor for how we’d like to use the facility,” Brady said.
Now, the committee has scheduled their very first event for March 24, an artist mixer and grant reception for the Cultural Council’s 2026 grantees. Then, on April 1, the center will be open to the public.
When the center is open, the council plans to host a number of activities including a speaker series, Brady said.
“One will be a speaker series that will be focused on artists and other creatives and the kind of information that they would like to know about. So, for instance, grant writing, where to find opportunities as an artist or creative to get funding,” she said.
Brady also said the council intends to use the space as an art gallery, allowing artist cooperatives to display their art and possibly host receptions, workshops and more.
Once the space is up and running, it will be co-managed by the Cultural Council’s subcommittee for the center and the mayor’s office, Donohue said.