Mansfield Arts Group Buys Land To Build Theater, Art Gallery

MANSFIELD, MA — A local art nonprofit hopes to make Mansfield a cultural hub within the next few years after purchasing property to build an arts center.

The Mass Music & Arts Society (MMAS) bought three acres on South Main Street, across from the Xfinity Center and plans to build a new a new state-of-the-art facility. The complex tentatively titled the “Arts Center at Great Woods will feature a 250-seat theater, 3,000 square-foot art gallery, classrooms, and a rooftop bar overlooking the Norton Reservoir.

The property cost MMAS $1.9 million. MMAS has been renting the property for the past two years, using it for educational programs and as a concert venue. Former property owner Tom Souza took $100,00 off the purchase price and donated an additional $160,000 from rent MMAs paid him over the last two years, MMAS development director Abigail Young said in a press release. The group has raised $710,000 towards construction, the release said. The rest of the money came from a loan, which was approved by Mansfield Bank.

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