Educational space improvements on the top floor
By Lauren Stepp
In the fall of 2024, when the French Broad River breached its banks during Hurricane Helene, a wall of water surged through the Madison County Arts Council in downtown Marshall. Windows shattered, doors warped and mud swallowed the basement. Insurance adjusters would later measure more than six feet of water on the first floor, with the lower level completely inundated.
“The water came in the front of our building, blew out all the windows and pushed everything out the back,” says executive director Brandon Johnson. “A tree snag diverted the current down Main Street, so it forced its way straight through us. When our program director finally got inside, he had to lay chairs down across the floor so he wouldn’t sink into the mud.”
Now, after an extraordinary community effort, the Madison County Arts Council has reopened its Main Street home, beginning a new chapter for one of Marshall’s most vital community anchors.
“The community really lost an important space to be together,” says Johnson. “We’re excited to bring that space back, enhanced and better for the people it serves.”
Erich Huber and Brandon Johnson. Photos By Sarah Jones Decker
Rather than simply rebuild what was lost, the organization revived a capital campaign, using the moment to address long-standing needs. The $1.2 million renovation adds an elevator, a wheelchair lift, four ADA-compliant bathrooms and a full HVAC system—upgrades that will allow the Arts Council to welcome more people through its doors.
“Before, we would have about four months a year where we couldn’t reliably program because it was either too hot or too cold,” says Johnson. “Year-round climate control is going to be a game-changer for us.”
Still, the recovery effort has taken a village. In the immediate aftermath of the storm, volunteers cleared debris and soldiers from the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division helped remove thick mud from the basement. Major financial support later came from the North Carolina Community Foundation, the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, the North Carolina Arts Council, the Partnership for Appalachian Girls Education and the Rotary Club of Madison County, alongside many other grantors and hundreds of individual donors.
“It became really clear how much we meant to the community when people jumped in to support the work we did,” says Johnson.
Now, with concerts, gallery exhibits, workshops and youth programs returning to Main Street, the Arts Council is reclaiming its role as both gathering place and economic driver.
“I helped move the Arts Council into that building in 2007,” says Johnson. “Seeing it destroyed was heavy. But seeing people back inside it again has reminded me why all of this matters.”
Madison County Arts Council (MCAC) will hold its Grand Opening on Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2. MCAC’s Youth Art Month opens on May 1, and on May 2 the Council will host a concert with Josh Goforth, Bryan McDowell and special guest Sheila Kay Adams. The Madison County Arts Council is located at 90 South Main Street in Marshall. For information, call 828.649.1301 or visit MadisonCountyArts.com.
