Shuttered Mission Cultural Center could reopen by summer

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The Mission Cultural Center for the Latino Arts could be reopening, at least in part, as early as this summer after closing abruptly last January. 

To reopen, the new board must comply with a list of guidelines that would allow the center to access a previously approved special grant and its regular operational grants from the city’s Arts Commission, city officials said.

“I first want to say thank you to all of you,” said Susana Rojas, executive director of Calle 24, to a crowd of about 30 people gathered at the center on Tuesday evening. “I might get emotional, because when we first came here, the future of MCCLA looked very, very dark.”

In an effort to bridge gaps, Rojas also posted a GoFundMe campaign Tuesday to “Save MCCLA,” with a goal of $24,000. 

News broke in January that the center, at 2868 Mission St. near 25th Street, was to close indefinitely amidst a financial crisis that left the center with virtually no employees and only $400 in the bank as of Dec. 31 last year. The dire situation led the Arts Commission, which manages the center’s city-funded grants, to take control of the building.

The center has offered classes, art shows and printing workshops since its founding in 1977. It closed for the holidays and never reopened.

Instead, on Jan. 14, board member Rob Sanchez and then interim executive director Derek Jentzsch sent an email informing the Arts Commission that the center had run out of money and desperately needed an advance payment to continue operating.

With no advanced funds, the center would need to either declare bankruptcy, merge with other nonprofits, restructure the organization or work under the fiscal sponsorship of another mission-aligned organization. 

For three months, the center has remained closed with no signs of reopening.

But as of today, Rojas said, the center now has a new fiscal sponsor: The San Francisco Study Center, Incorporated, the same sponsor as Calle 24. Donations are tax-exempt.  

“We, among many others, really thought that we were closing our beloved center. I’m standing here today with a lot of hope and a lot of good news and a lot of work that has happened behind doors that have us in a position to celebrate,” Rojas said.

Amongst the good news, the center could access $122,500 in reimbursable funds from a previously-approved special grant meant to help archive the center’s art pieces during a planned renovation of the building, Rojas shared.

The center’s leadership already toured two locations on Mission Street between 20th and 23rd streets for a new home during construction.

Rojas said on Tuesday that leaders are working on a memorandum of understanding with the city to receive the funds. The center already submitted a required proposal detailing the timeline and scope of work. If everything goes well, the archival process could start next month.

In an update in front of arts commissioners on Monday, Art Commission deputy director Sarah Hollenbeck confirmed the negotiations with the center’s new board of directors and Calle 24, with plans to allocate monthly reimbursements to the center between May and December. 

Rojas said she also received an email today in which the commission said it was open to resuming the center’s annual operational grant, with conditions. The Mission Cultural Center would need to submit a quarterly fiscal report for the last operational quarter. In the meantime, the Arts Commission has picked up the tab for utilities and insurance payments.

Rojas’ hope is to finalize all the reports required to resume the center’s operational grant, $759,164 annually, soon. An initial payment of about $160,000 would allow the center to reopen in June, she said, albeit with reduced programming. If all goes well, another payment would be made in the fall. 

In the meantime, the volunteers and new board members are hoping to raise enough money to pay off an outstanding line of credit of about $90,000 and another $26,000 to cover all the accounting services. The center has already received some smaller donations and a $5,000 loan, Rojas said.

Disclosure: Lydia Chávez, Mission Local’s executive editor, donated to the Mission Cultural Center’s online fundraiser.