January 10th–June 9th 2024
64 Union Square, Somerville, MA
Hours
Monday–Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday–Sunday: 1 pm–8 pm
About
The Union Square neighborhood has long sought a community center to rebuild social connections. As the neighborhood continues to grow and undergo changes with the onset of new developments, the need for a community center has become even more pressing. Working alongside the Union Square Neighborhood Council, we have transformed a vacant storefront into a community-driven pop-up to test ideas for a future community center. This free-to-enter intergenerational pop-up will be a public space pilot, a living room for the community, a resource center, and an arts, culture, and business incubator.
Events
Speed Dating for Friends+
Panethnic Pourovers Bake Sale
CultureHouse x This Music presents Martin Gohary + Kat Jara, Persian-South American Fusion!
No Sew Yarn Dolls Drop-In Workshop
Office Hours with Councilor Willie Burnley, Jr.
Neighborhood Doc Night presented by Fableworks Studio
Saturday Stitch In
Writing Disability and Illness
Community Paint Day
LGBTQ+ Improv Comedy Community Meetup
Community Dinner
Climate Café
Exhibits
Trauma//Healing & other works
Celebrating AAPI Heritage Month
Get engaged
We are working with the Union Square community to ensure the pop-up meets local needs and that residents are active participants in determining the future of their neighborhood. There will be several opportunities to engage with the project throughout this process.
Programming
We appreciate all the submissions we have got so far! As we are reaching the end of the pop-up the space is limited and we no longer have a budget to compensate the artists, creatives, and organizations to host events. Thank you for making this pop-up what it is! If you still have any thoughts, ideas, or questions, please email us at unionsquare@culturehouse.cc.
Community meeting
On November 30th, 2023, we hosted a hybrid community meeting on Zoom and at CultureHouse HQ. This meeting was attended by people who live, work, and frequently visit Union Square. We shared updates about the project and engaged in a design activity to learn about everyone’s ideal day at the pop-up! Check out the link below to see what was discussed and hear the amazing ideas we heard from the community.
Advisory group
Over the next few months, we will work closely with a team of local artists, residents, institutions, and businesses to give us feedback on the project and steer its direction.
Carven Boursiquot
Resident, homeowner, artist/creative, Carven Creative Media
Jennifer Park
Resident, homeowner
Lotus Martinez
Resident, renter, artist/creative
W Gavin Robb
Architect, Educator, Activist
Emma Lee
Resident, renter
Joshua Williams
Three-year resident of Somerville
Suhail Purkar
Resident, renter
Union Square Main Streets
Jessica Eshleman, Executive Director
Michael Robles, Small Business Liaison
Kait Stinchcomb, ARPA Managing Director
Gonzalo Puigbo
CEO Somerville Community Corporation
Monia Fernandez
Business owner, MOTA Fitness, Wellness & Spaces
Tammi Chen
Resident, renter
Union Square Neighborhood Council
Ann Camara
Isabella Drago
Michèle Hansen
What’s happening?
Where we’re at
The pop-up doors are open! From January to June, we will be welcoming the Union Square community into the space and engaging with them through various events. At the same time, we will be studying who is visiting the pop-up, how visitors are using the space, and what they liked about their experience. This will help us inform the recommendations for a long-term community center.
Donate
CultureHouse Union Square will be free-to-enter because of support from people like you. Help support our work by giving a tax-deductible donation.
Contact
Want to get involved in the project? Email us at unionsquare@culturehouse.cc.
Sign up for project updates
Partners
