Riverworks, Poolesville’s arts center and gallery, has raised enough funds to begin the transformation of Old Methodist Church to an arts display space.
Established as a nonprofit in 2022, Riverworks Art Center has since offered over 100 performances and events in Poolesville, including photographer spotlights, concerts, and seasonal festivals. Riverworks’ Artists in House Gallery is located inside the Locals Farm Market, one of Poolesville’s small businesses. A new exhibit in the gallery featuring regional artists is managed every six weeks. It is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday.
Nature photographer Carolyn Thome had nearly 50 of her photographs featured in Riverworks’ gallery this spring in her exhibit “Bigger Than Life.”
“It’s great to have a local place where people can see that there are artists around them and to make people more aware of art,” said Thome.
To further their mission of promoting the arts, Riverworks plans to renovate the Old Methodist Church at 17605 West Willard Road. The historic structure will serve as a space for performing arts as well as lectures and roundtables surrounded by outdoor gardens. It will be a center for arts engagement, arts education, and cultural activities.
Claire Jones is the owner and a teacher of Essence Studios. Her dance team regularly performs at the existing Riverworks performance space next to the church. She expressed her thoughts on the renovation plans, which feature a large indoor and outdoor stage with around 150 seats.
“I’m really excited for my dancers to be able to be on that stage,” said Jones, “It increases the versatility of the space of the venue and what the community can get from it.”
Riverworks received financial support from the town of Poolesville, Montgomery County, the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority, and local community members for the project.
Jeff Sypeck, Riverworks board member, explained the road to renovation.
“The renovation idea was dreamt up around 2021 and it’s taken us two or three years to do all the fundraising,” said Sypeck, “We had to raise $2 million to get this renovation going.”
Sufficient funds were acquired this year, and a celebration ceremony was held on Sept. 20 to break ground. The completion of construction and opening of the new space has a rough projection date.
“We are currently in permitting with Montgomery County,” said Riverworks founder and co-executive director Sandy Wright. “Once they approve the plan hopefully we’ll start construction in winter or early next year and it will be ready by summer of 2026.” Prior to Riverworks’ renovation plans, the old church served as a Town Hall, pharmacy, veterinarian’s office, and thrift shop. The use of the building for Riverworks will allow the church to serve the community of Poolesville once more.
“Having the building is really going to send a big signal to the entire community,” said Sypeck. “Everybody’s going to know that Riverworks is here to stay.” While the church transformation finishes, Riverworks continues to offer many opportunities. Artists and performers can take advantage of Riverworks’ resources by attending workshops, participating in music jam sessions, showcasing their art by submitting portfolios, or keeping an eye out for open exhibitions to be featured in the gallery on the Riverworks website.
