Old posters advertising the Vermont International Festival fill a notice board in Ben Bergstein and April Werner's office in Burlington's North End Studio A. Rows of whiteboards have been converted into monthly planners. Framed paintings and a map of the world decorate the rest of the room. North End Studios, on North Winooski Avenue, is the home base of the Vermont Performing Arts League. It's here that the husband-and-wife team plans the nonprofit's programs, including the annual VIF. But North End Studios isn't solely an organization's headquarters — increasingly, it's a thriving community space. Locals have been coming to the studios for classes, performances and gatherings of all kinds. The space is especially popular with New American communities for engagement, graduation and wedding celebrations, Bergstein said. While the largest room, Studio A, has approximately a 150-person capacity, it's still not big enough for some of the events community members want to hold there, he noted. Bergstein and Werner have no larger space to offer them. That's going to change. The pair is currently in talks with the Champlain Housing Trust about managing the cafeteria and kitchen in the former Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph's church and school. That building is also located in the Old North End, in the heart of a neighborhood that's long been a first home for new arrivals. Its spaces will allow New American and other groups to host more and bigger events, said Bergstein. And its kitchen will permit on-site food preparation, which is not available at the North Winooski Avenue location. "There is no [other] space that size that is going to be that affordable," Bergstein pointed out. "I'm pretty hopeful," said Michael Monte, CHT chief operations and financial officer, of the organization's negotiations with Bergstein and Werner. "[We're] mutually working it out together, taking the right pace and making sure we do it right." The housing nonprofit has signed an agreement with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington to lease and then buy the former school for $2 million. The building on 20 Allen Street currently houses three nonprofits: Robin's Nest Children's Center and the Janet S. Munt Family Room occupy the first floor, while the Association of Africans Living in Vermont is on the third floor. This isn't the first community building CHT has developed, said Chris Donnelly, the organization's director of community relations. Some of its other properties are the Chittenden Emergency…
Old posters advertising the Vermont International Festival fill a notice board in Ben Bergstein and April Werner's office in Burlington's North End Studio A. Rows of whiteboards have been converted into monthly planners. Framed paintings and a map of the world decorate the rest of the room. North End Studios, on North Winooski Avenue, is the home base of the Vermont Performing Arts League. It's here that the husband-and-wife team plans the nonprofit's programs, including the annual VIF. But North End Studios isn't solely an organization's headquarters — increasingly, it's a thriving community space. Locals have been coming to the studios for classes, performances and gatherings of all kinds. The space is especially popular with New American communities for engagement, graduation and wedding celebrations, Bergstein said. While the largest room, Studio A, has approximately a 150-person capacity, it's still not big enough for some of the events community members want to hold there, he noted. Bergstein and Werner have no larger space to offer them. That's going to change. The pair is currently in talks with the Champlain Housing Trust about managing the cafeteria and kitchen in the former Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph's church and school. That building is also located in the Old North End, in the heart of a neighborhood that's long been a first home for new arrivals. Its spaces will allow New American and other groups to host more and bigger events, said Bergstein. And its kitchen will permit on-site food preparation, which is not available at the North Winooski Avenue location. "There is no [other] space that size that is going to be that affordable," Bergstein pointed out. "I'm pretty hopeful," said Michael Monte, CHT chief operations and financial officer, of the organization's negotiations with Bergstein and Werner. "[We're] mutually working it out together, taking the right pace and making sure we do it right." The housing nonprofit has signed an agreement with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington to lease and then buy the former school for $2 million. The building on 20 Allen Street currently houses three nonprofits: Robin's Nest Children's Center and the Janet S. Munt Family Room occupy the first floor, while the Association of Africans Living in Vermont is on the third floor. This isn't the first community building CHT has developed, said Chris Donnelly, the organization's director of community relations. Some of its other properties are the Chittenden Emergency…