1912 Center director previews Third Floor schematic, highlights community programs

Jenny Kostroff, executive director of Heart of the Arts, presented the 1912 Center annual report to the Moscow City Council on March 3, 2025, highlighting a schematic design for the building’s Third Floor and the center’s community programs.

Kostroff told the council the 1912 Center is city-owned and that Heart of the Arts serves as steward of the building. She said the nonprofit hired downtown architecture firm KNIT this past year to develop a schematic design for the Third Floor and that she plans to bring construction documents and a formal proposal back through committee and to council when ready.

Why it matters: The 1912 Center houses community programming, arts space and rental rooms used by groups across Moscow. Renovations and a plan for a building endowment would affect how the facility is used and maintained going forward.

Kostroff described recent physical work and ongoing programs. She said exterior railings were repainted, the back parking lot was repaired after damage by a garbage truck, and the organization completed a schematic design for the Third Floor with KNIT. She said the center hosted four gallery shows last year and currently has a community show titled "What's Cookin'?" that will run through March.

Kostroff reviewed ongoing and recurring programs managed by Heart of the Arts at the 1912 Center. She said the Welcome Table is a free community dinner held most months that served "10 meals last year" and that each dinner seats 12 people; donations toward the meal are used for the next dinner and written cards from attendees support grant applications. She said the 1912 Center Makes program — a free, drop-in arts-making night — runs on the third Monday of the month (taking a summer break) and that the center offers a weekly newsletter that is distributed at 8 a.m. Mondays. She provided the center’s contact email as 1912center@gmail.com for newsletter signups.

Kostroff also described partnerships and volunteer involvement, noting that newly appointed commission members Leah Halterman and Tanya Denison volunteer at the center. She recounted the building’s history: built in 1912 as Moscow’s original high school, it was later purchased from the school district by the city and saved as a community asset. Kostroff said Janet LeCompte was an early large donor and made a $2,000,000 gift that helped secure initial renovation phases.

“This is the 1912 Center. This is your building. It is our community center here in Moscow,” Kostroff told the council, and she said she will return with more detailed Third Floor plans for formal review.

The presentation included a short question-and-answer period; council members and the public were invited to view the schematic design when it is returned to committee.