A downtown Guthrie Center building has seen a lot change to its exterior in the last month, and a local group will be celebrating the progress they’ve made so far and what is to come this weekend.

The Guthrie Activity Center Board has worked the last few years fundraising for improvements on the building’s interior, roof, and facade, for which they received a $70,000 Main Street Iowa grant to restore the front to a traditional brick look. This particular project is expected to be completed by the end of the month, but the Board continues to raise the remaining funds for that work and for the renovation of the center’s kitchen.

Board President Dennis Flanery gives the impetus for the building’s remodeling, “We felt the building really needed some update and some redirection so that we could keep it going in the community. And so that was kind of why I got involved and then we had an active board that was really good about planning and looking into the future on the needs. And so it’s been used by a lot of various organizations, fundraisers, family gatherings, small wedding receptions, and we felt that was still a need and so we wanted to keep the building functional and keep it going.”

Flanery also highlights the multimedia enhancements and the new small meeting room that he hopes will attract even more groups to use the building. The Board is hosting a fundraiser dinner and concert with Chad Elliott this Sunday at 5 p.m. at the activity center. Proceeds will go towards the building’s improvements and tickets can be purchased at Art on State, Guthrie County State Bank, and Peoples Bank. Danish Countryside Winery will also have a variety of wines available to purchase by the bottle to enjoy at the event.