[caption id="attachment_2168" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://tallerpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Taller_Puertorriqueno_Rendering_2014_05_28.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2168" src="http://tallerpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Taller_Puertorriqueno_Rendering_2014_05_28-300x225.jpg" alt="The New Cultural Center" width="300" height="225" /></a> A rendering of El Corazón Cultural Center[/caption]

After 10 years of envisioning, planning and fundraising by Taller’s Board, staff, partners and community, the much-anticipated moment has finally come.<strong>  Taller Puertorriqueño is breaking ground on its new facility, El Corazón Cultural Center, on September 18<sup>th</sup>, 2015 from 4-6 pm, at the building site at 2600-2624 N. 5<sup>th</sup> Street (5th &amp; Huntingdon)</strong>.

Slated to open in autumn of 2016, the much-expanded 25,000-square-foot Center consolidates all our operations and functions as a community hub and gathering space. It includes a privately-run café, an elegant terrace that can host private functions and an outdoor art patio for social functions and private contemplation. It also provides full accessibility to all Taller services, including the Julia de Burgos Gift Shop, gallery, and educational wing.

Its flexible multipurpose theater will seat up to 200 guests, allowing Taller to host larger performances. A parking lot with 86 spots allows parents to drop off and pick up their children and accommodates buses. Larger classrooms open into an enclosed playground and garden, giving more children a safe environment where they can learn and grow. This project empowers Philadelphia’s Latino communities while further developing bridges of understanding with other groups within the city.

<img class=" wp-image-1218 alignleft" src="http://tallerpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/El-Corazón-Cultural-Center-Naming-opps1.jpg" alt="El Corazón Cultural Center Naming opps" width="458" height="327" /><strong>This monumental achievement will constitute the largest Puerto Rican/Latino-based arts and cultural facility in the state of Pennsylvania and the region</strong>. The success of this project illustrates the important role Taller plays in its community and underlines the power of arts and cultural programming to create social change and build community. The Center will act as an economic engine, spurring new business development in the area and creating a striking and architecturally-significant gateway to El Centro de Oro. El Corazón Cultural will be an anchor and a source of pride that serves the region’s growing Latino population and educates the wider public about Latino cultural contributions.

This milestone is also exciting because of the remarkable community support received. We recognize the economic realities of our community, yet we marvel at the astonishing number of neighbors and friends who have donated, even if just $1. <strong>El Corazón Cultural Center belongs to our community</strong>- everyone has a stake in it.

To secure success, we will continue to collect donations for <strong>Taller Puertorriqueño’s El Corazón Cultural Center Building Fund. </strong> <strong>$100 or more adds your name (or a loved one’s name, if donated in honor of someone) on our prominently-displayed donor wall.</strong> To all the individuals, foundations, corporations, and government entities that have already contributed to the campaign, we can’t thank you enough for your crucial support.

We hope to see you at the September 18<sup>th</sup> ground-breaking ceremony!

Sincerely,

<img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3904" src="http://tallerpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/carmensig.jpg" alt="carmensig" width="200" height="53" />

&nbsp;

&nbsp;
Carmen Febo San Miguel, M.D.
Executive Director

&nbsp;

For more detailed information, download our Capital Campaign Catalog <a title="Catalog" href="http://tallerpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Taller-PR-Capital-Campaign-Catalog.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.

For more information about naming opportunities or the project, please contact Carmen Febo San Miguel by telephone at 215-426-3311 or by email at cfebo@tallerpr.org.

<strong>To give, click on the donation button below.</strong>

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