Three years ago this month, the Pioneer Arts Center of Easthampton, which produces concerts and plays and offers theater and music classes, had its doors shut. The rented space had been outfitted, in an extensive renovation, with plentiful seating and a new theater layout, but it was shut down by a building inspector for failure to meet fire safety codes. The costs of compliance imperiled the nonprofit's existence, but after some improvements, co-founders David and Sonia Fried Oppenheim were able to reopen the theater two weeks after its closing.
Now things look less perilous: the organization's successful bid for the old mill building at 15 Cottage Street in Easthampton promises to take it from its current home at 41 Union St. in Easthampton to a huge and versatile space the Oppenheims plan to outfit with sprawling arts facilities and spaces for businesses. The pair are, as of press time, seeking financing.
PACE first opened its doors in the fall of 2002, and for much of the time since, the Oppenheims have searched for a permanent home for their organization. They collided with some difficult realities.
At first, the Oppenheims' search for real estate seemed futile, which David Oppenheim, in a recent Advocate interview, attributed, in retrospect, to youth: "We were a young organization. When we first started looking, we were only two years old. For a nonprofit arts organization to be as ambitious as that at such a young age, it raises red flags amongst people. As much as we tried to say, 'No we're in this for the long term,' understandably, it was a tough row to hoe.
"Now we're six and a half years old. It's a big difference. We've faced some heavy obstacles on the way. We lost some big productions, and found creative ways to keep ourselves afloat—productions such as Godspell and Westside Story, and Swimming to Cambodia, the first non-Spalding Gray production of it. We've been able to put ourselves on the larger map of the arts in the region and establish ourselves as serious players, even for a young organization.
"What was profound was thinking that we could do this at all. Taking this on, as risky as it is—people use words like 'gutsy' or 'ambitious.' It's exciting, but it's not foolhardy, not blindly ambitious. We've done the research and numbers—showed that this could not only work, but could provide us with a physical endowment, generate income for the organization."
Oppenheim seems thrilled, almost giddy, that his young organization has finally arrived at such an impressive victory: "To be able to generate an endowment—it's one heck of a thing!"
His plans for the new space promise to bring more of the kind of change Easthampton has witnessed over the last decade. The old mill town, frayed edges and all, is home to new energy both literal, with the likes of Greasecar, a vegetable oil diesel concern, and metaphorical: Eastworks has become a hub of new business, and the demographics seem to have changed as would-be Northamptonites flee southeast for affordable real estate. New businesses have come (and gone) along Union and Cottage Streets, from trailblazer Flywheel to a new dollar store.
The Oppenheims' plan is big—the whole bill, David Oppenheim figures, will approach $5 million. "It's good for us, and it's good for the entire Valley," he says. "We're looking at turning 25,000 square feet into an arts complex—a 350-seat theater with a 2,000 square foot stage; a black box, multi-use room which will be usable for everything from concerts and theatrical production to dance and film production; classrooms, studios for dance and music, costume and prop shops, dressing rooms, green rooms. We're looking to be an incubator for new works—if we don't have to generate income, we can develop work without the same concern."
Easthampton may not be a destination city just yet, but with a clear path and an atmosphere of change, this sharp-eyed gamble could pay off for PACE. As Oppenheim puts it, "It's still a struggle. But I would not say it's akin to Sisyphus—the boulder doesn't slide all the way back down."
