The Frederick Arts Council is looking for a new home. The Arts Council's Board of Directors has decided to sell the Cultural Arts Center at 15 West Patrick Street, which is located in the Arts and Entertainment District across from the Weinberg Center. The sale includes the offices, Event Hall, Gallery and Black Box Theater.

"The Arts Council is refocusing on its mission to foster an environment where the arts can flourish in Frederick through grants, scholarships and arts advocacy rather than continue to function as a landlord as well," says Arts Council Board President Susan Stanczyk, in a statement. "We look forward to relocating in downtown Frederick,where we can continue to serve the arts community and also work as a facilitator for groups seeking local venues."

The Arts Council purchased the Cultural Arts Center in 1998. It was once downtown Frederick's McCrory's store. Parts of the building are 100 years old.

Acting Director Susie Miller says the Cultural Arts Center has been renting out the facilities to local arts groups, but that hasn't brought in enough to keep the building going. "Sustainability because of the low rents and things that we charge, we just don't have the support to able to do that," she says. "And part of that has come from having cut funds from both government and private sources."

Miller hopes that the arts groups that use the Cultural Arts Center will find other locations. "One of the things we're hoping to do is become a really good conduit for folks in the area that may have extra space, either real estate people or some of our malls, that they'd be interested in having some of our folks perform in," she says.

This impending sale of the Cultural Arts Center will not affect the annual events put on by the Arts Council, such as Festival of the Greens and Stocking, Decadent Desserts, Art in the Park and the Frederick Festival of the Arts, which will be celebrating its 20th year in 2013, Miller says.

It was just announced that the Cultural Arts Center is up for sale, and no buyer has emerged. But Miller hopes the future owner will continue to operate the facility as an arts center.

The Cultural Arts Center is also home to the Maryland Shakespeare Festival.