Portside Arts Center

Our mission: Portside Arts Center is a non-profit, creative hub for community members to increase their access to the arts. Through dynamic arts programing, Portside empowers the children and adults of the community with opportunities to develop their artistic abilities, awaken the imagination, and build self-esteem and confidence. In 2007, Kim Creighton, a member of the North Philadelphia community for over 27 years, founded the Portside Arts Center in Port Richmond as a response to lack of after school arts programming in Port Richmond. With the support of friends and community volunteers, Kim was able to renovate a square foot warehouse and turn it into the creative hub for students and adults. The Portside Arts Center proudly opened their doors in January 2008 and since that time, has offered more than 60 different music, visual and performing arts classes every year, impacting the lives of over 1,200 at-risk youth in Port Richmond. Portside continues to serve the community by offering a safe and nurturing place for families to send their children after school - in turn, helping them stay in school longer, pursue their passions, and ultimately lead healthier lives. The Portside Arts Center is a non-profit, 501 (c)(3) community-based, educational arts center located at 2531 E. Lehigh Avenue, serving the greater Philadelphia area.