In late 2015, a small group of community leaders began to meet for coffee in the early mornings before work in the back room at 9 East Coffee shop. Frustrated with the ongoing disenfranchisement of our downtown, the group was interested in creating a grassroots initiative that could address revitalization with innovative and actionable ideas. 

Led by Dean Wright, then Director of Freeport Area Church Cooperative and former City Council member, the group became known as City Centre Freeport.  Jessica Modica, then Director of the Freeport Art Museum, had been building the relevancy of the museum as a community resource through a number of pop-up exhibitions and collaborative events. She was invited to join the City Centre group to represent the arts sector. One of the strategies they developed was to adopt creative placemaking techniques to utilize vacant property owned by the Freeport Art Museum located in the heart of the downtown district. 

At the same time, the museum had been approached by a growing number of groups and individuals interested in using the space for a variety of festivals and events. The Arts Plaza project was born as a result and the City of Freeport quickly joined in the effort to transform the space into a vibrant arts-based space designed to encourage civic engagement, facilitate economic development, and to create a more walkable community. 

Jessica Modica is now leading the Arts Plaza project through its completion, planned for the fall of 2021.