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Go to the Des Moines Social Club’s website, and you will find the following note: “For more than 10 years the Des Moines Social Club has served this community’s growing, artistic community. Our vision was to bring people together through the arts and provide access to vibrant cultural offerings. As new arts and cultural organizations have emerged and expanded, it is also time for our organization to imagine what’s next.” 

According to an article written by WHO in June, “In (the last) five years, the Des Moines Social Club has gone through almost as many executive directors and lost millions in revenue.” 

The Des Moines Social Club hosted classes for art exhibits, comedy shows and provided a space for many other social events. Unfortunately, financial challenges are forcing the Social Club to close and re-vamp the space into something new. 

A public market will take the place of the existing Social Club. It is a combination of efforts of many Des Moines organizations, including the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines. Angie Dethlefs-Trettin, the chief community impact officer of the foundation, said that a public market is something that has been discussed for many years, and when that idea was floated, there was a ton of enthusiasm. She also mentioned the timing being right for where the Des Moines area and community is currently. The renovation of the existing building will only cost about 30 % of funding that would be needed to create an entirely new space for the market. 

The idea of a public market is a space that would host a variety of owner-operated shops or vendors. Fresh and locally grown food would potentially be available all year as well as other opportunities for entertainment and art. 

The Des Moines Social Club board is trying to maintain a presence and communication with the community through the transition. However, one question many are asking is if the events that have been previously scheduled will still take place in the Social Club? Many different groups have been holding various activities at the Social Club for years, and are being forced to find a new venue for their performances or shows. 

One of these people is Al Schares with Iowa Public Radio. Schares has been a part of a group called Studio One Underground that has put on a monthly radio show in the Social Club’s space for the past four years. 

“It was a way to get into the community and let people see radio being made,” Schares said. 

Although Studio One Underground existed in the Social Club’s space monthly, Schares said that their group was merely a patron of the Social Club. They were happy to use the organization’s space when they could and are sad to see it go. He also said that with music and the arts it was a really great space where everyone’s mission coincided. They were there to bring the arts together, not to turn a profit. 

Luckily, Studio One Underground has been able to find a new venue in Des Moines called ‘XBK,’ a space newly opened by Station 1 Records. 

The Des Moines Social Club has stated that all events scheduled in its spaces will happen in 2019. However, many groups are being proactive and finding a new location while they still have time. 

“Although the Des Moines Social Club’s name is going away, the businesses working with the public market concept want the mission of the Social Club to stay alive,” Dethlefs-Trettin said. “They are still creating a space to build community for the Greater Des Moines Area. Pockets of Greater Des Moines are growing, and it’s important to continue to add vibrancy to the Western Gateway neighborhood, downtown and the region. I think the public market idea is a testament to how our community continues to collaborate and evolve things to be better for the area.”