Achieve With Us
The Arc is not an acronym; always refer to us as The Arc, not The ARC and never ARC. The Arc should be considered a title.
Greenspace Stories
Encompassing one city block in downtown Meadville, The Arc Community Greenspace models community inclusion and features an ADA-accessible walkway that celebrates Mill Run, models solar energy, includes native plantings, and builds community capacity. The site serves as a venue for arts, culture and wellness events organized by the community for the community and is open to the public as an informal community gathering space where all are welcome. To propose an event, please complete this form.
Construction of The Greenspace was completed in August 2023 with support from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts’ Creative Communities Initiative and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, The Pennsylvania Humanities Council, the Orton Family Foundation, private donors and hundreds of community volunteers.
Visit this link for more information on early development and our first community-engaged mural, Bloom Where You’re Planted.
View Amara Geffen speak more about the Greenspace in this video at 8 minutes.
Pears Garlic Fest
On August 10, 2024 the Meadville Neighborhood Center presented a revival of Pears Garlic Fest, which was hosted by Jason Pears in Cambridge Springs in past years. The event invited both amateur and seasoned chefs to contribute garlic-themed cuisine for judges and the public to enjoy. The most delectable dishes were awarded “most creative” and “best overall.”
The event also featured live music from Crawford County rock bands Credit/No Credit (Josh Searle-White, Jennifer Helwarth, DP Warner, Phil Foxman, and Lauren French) and Touch of Grey (John Hyatt, DP Warner, Josh Searle-White, Jennifer Helwarth, Joe Frisina, and Richard Freysinger).
​
The weather was perfect and great for dancing and sampling exquisite dishes prepared by local residents. Visitors played games, relaxed, sampled the food, listened to music, and purchased “All you need is cLOVE” T-shirts to support Not One More’s Hayden House, a women’s recovery house renovation project in Meadville. Support for this year’s Garlic Fest was provided by the Meadville Neighborhood Center and ACE Hardware of Meadville.
Second Saturday Night Live Concert-
Freshwater Jazz
Freshwater Jazz performing during the June 8 2024 Second Saturday Night Live Concert - New and classic jazz from NW PA and NE Ohio. Matt Ferrence, saxophone. Shane Hogle, bass. Aaron White, keys.
Performance by Pittsburgh
Jazz and Cabaret Singer
On August 12, 2023, Pittsburgh Jazz and Cabaret Singer Phat Man Dee’s performance was moved to the Gardner Theatre at the Meadville Council on the Arts (MCA) due to rain. Performing with an impromptu team of local musicians, Phat Man Dee concert followed Meadville Community Theatre’s performance of two scenes from Shakespeare in the Park. After her performance at MCA, Phat Man Dee went back to The Greenspace and performed her song “A Thousand Miles Away,” which expresses aspects of her experience of isolation during the Covid-pandemic. Her solo performance, without backup musicians, is a love-filled gift to us all.
Hoola Hoop and Square Dancing
Hoola Hoop and Square Dancing August 4, 2023, The Arc held a “soft opening” for The Greenspace featuring the amazing Erie, PA hoop dancer, Jennifer Dennehy, who performed and taught a community hoola hoop class. Following this Brenda Schmidt led a community square dancing class.