Sneak peek: Lexington’s downtown arts center gets a $2.7 million overhaul
Lexington unveiled a $2.7 million renovation and upgrade to the Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center on Main Street on Wednesday.
The renovation of the third floor into an event, studio and meeting space has been 23 years in the making. The city acquired the building at 141 E. Main Street in 2002. Although the first and second floors have been in use since that time, the third floor was largely unused by arts groups.
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“Since our arts center opened in 2002, the third floor has shown so much potential but remained unfinished, ”Mayor Linda Gorton said at a ribbon-cutting Wednesday. “Today, that potential is realized with wonderful reception and event spaces to support our community and arts organizations.”
Thanks to American Rescue Plan Act — federal coronavirus relief money — the city finally finished the third floor of the center, which has art exhibition space, the Black Box Theatre, a dance studio and other art spaces. The top floor has two new spaces — the Embry and Lowenthal rooms, which are flexible spaces that people can rent for events such as weddings and meetings. In addition, there is a studio that can be used by artists or by groups looking for meeting spaces.
On the first floor is a newly renovated space called Encore, which can house smaller music and arts events or can be rented for meetings or social events. The Encore is in the former Alfalfa’s restaurant space, which closed in 2018.
The money generated from renting the rooms will help offset the cost of running the Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center, Gorton said.
Embry and Lowenthal are the names of two former department stores that were once on that block, Gorton said.
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman Hannah LeGris, who represents downtown, said the addition of more usable space will add more real estate and opportunities for the arts to flourish downtown.
“For years, we’ve been aware of the beauty and potential of this space and now we get to experience the possibilities — from events and performances to artist workshops and receptions,” said LeGris.
The city acquired the Downtown Arts Center in 2002 and changed its name to honor Miller, Lexington’s first female mayor, in 2017. Miller oversaw the creation of the arts center.
The renovation took more than 10 months to complete. Work on the center will continue. In addition to the federal coronavirus relief money, the city is set to spend $1 million on a new roof.
Information about how to book space can be found at lexingtonky.gov/pmdac.
The city spent more than a year renovating the building, including spending more than $1 million for a new roof.
