TSC Welcomes PAC3 & Grassroots Community TV

Josh Behrman and John Masters have a lot in common these days.  For both their organizations, PAC3 and GrassRoots Community Television, their new homes next door to each other in Third Street Center represent the realization of long-standing dreams.  The spaces that PAC3 and GrassRoots now occupy were the last two spaces to be leased within the Center—the former school gymnasium and kitchen.  The fully leased building also fulfills the original dream of those who worked over a number of years to establish TSC as a multi-tenant nonprofit center.  Leasing ofthe entire 34,000 square feet of available space helps maintain an affordable facility for nonprofits.

On May 30, PAC3 presented the MarchFourth Marching Band,
a circus-like brass band from Portland, OR. Bruce Cockburn, a
Roaring Fork Valley favorite, was the opening night performer on May 29.

As the producer of musical and festival events in Snowmass Village and Aspen, Josh had long dreamed of having a music venue of his own.  When introduced to the vacant Third Street space, he recognized the gym’s potential.  Josh and his nonprofit Music for the Mountains took on the challenge of transforming the gym into the inviting and dramatic multi-use performing arts center called PAC3 in less than three months’ time.

Providing a venue for all genres of performance art, nonprofit functions, and community activities, PAC3 opened May 29 with a concert by Canadian musician Bruce Cockburn.  The space seats 365 guests, and has genera admission room for 553 people.

With a summer of events behind him, Josh is looking forward to realizing all the possibilities contained within PAC3.  He explains, “One of the best parts of PAC3 is being able to have creative freedom.  As we grow and settle in, there are no limitations.”  He cites working with Aspen Film and presenting Paula Poundstone as PAC3’s first comedy act on November 25 as examples of “continuing to morph.”

Asked if he feels “at home” yet at Third Street, Josh answered, “Carbondale itself has embraced me, and it feels good to be part of the vibrancy of Third Street.  But, it’s kind of like any new home in that the more times you cook dinner and have friends over, the more comfortable you feel.  Now that fall is coming, and we’ve done a number of performances, I’m starting to feel at home and comfortable.”  He adds, “Putting on performances is our version of being at home and cooking dinner.”

The oldest community television station in the country is busily renovating—and seeking philanthropic support for—its new 829-sq.-ft. quarters in TSC’s former school kitchen.  According to John Masters, Executive Director of GrassRoots Community Television, its new office and studio will provide GrassRoots with a small but very efficient production facility complete with a couple of sets and new digital HD equipment.

Expanding the reach of GrassRoots studio in Aspen’s Red Brick Center for the Arts, the facility will enable more down-valley programming to be broadcast throughout the entire Roaring Fork Valley.  It will also enable GrassRoots to improve the affordable production and broadcast services that it currently provides to over 125 nonprofit clients, a number of which are housed in TSC.

Celebrating its 40th Anniversary year, GrassRoots finally has the down-valley home that its founder envisioned from the start.  John explains, “John Smith, who founded GrassRoots in 1972, had incredible vision to see the need for all the different Roaring Fork Valley towns to understand each other and communicate with each other.”  Smith’s original vision was to establish a valley-wide network of production facilities that would provide a communications channel, giving the different communities the opportunity to learn what was going on in the other towns.  But this dream only became possible this past year.  Comcast’s transformation into a digital system provided the bandwidth needed to add a community access channel.

Since May of 2010, viewers from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs have been able to access GrassRoots programming on cable channel 82.  John explains, “We had to wait until we were actually on the cable system in Carbondale to move ahead with establishing a studio here.  Now our clients will be able to produce shows right at Third Street, and communicate with each other and the whole valley via television.”

He sees great potential in having PAC3 located next door to GrassRoots studio.  “GrassRoots can extend the programming of PAC3 beyond the capacity of the room.  Our goal is to be able to broadcast live programs. Technically it’s very challenging, but it’s possible.”