A closer look inside Johnstown's Center for Metal Arts, awarded $1.5 million grant

CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WJAC) — Jordan Kachellek came all the way from London, England for an internship at the Center for Metal Arts in Johnstown.

"I love it. I've never been anywhere like this. It's kind of like a one in a million," Kachellek told 6 News.

The Center for Metal Arts forging school teaches the craft of blacksmithing with classes ranging from days to weeks long.

The nonprofit brings in about 250 students a year -- from all over the United States and world -- to learn to make tools, sculptures, and other projects.

"Bringing people here that love Johnstown, stimulating the local economy, and then (they) go back to all four corners of the world singing its praises, I think is doing a really positive thing for the city and the community," said Patrick Quinn, CMA's Executive Director.

After the former steel mill building along Iron Street stood empty for years, CMA moved into the space in 2018.

They're now starting their fifth year in Johnstown, connecting the city with its past with every workshop.

"We're helping, I think, to create a really positive public image for Johnstown. Moving us away from the connotation of the loss of jobs, industry moving away, and certainly the flood. Hopefully, potentially, Johnstown's rebirth as a city for craftspeople and artists," Quinn told 6 News.

Earlier this month, CMA received a $1.5 million grant to help restore their facilities, which are the oldest remaining buildings of the Johnstown Steel Mill.

The ARC Power Grant was awarded by the Appalachian Regional Commission.

"The announcement on May 12 of the $1.5 million ARC POWER grant completes the funding picture for the restoration of three key buildings at the Center for Metal Arts – the 13,000 square feet Blacksmith Shop known as “The Octagon”, the 19,000 square feet Carpentry and Pattern Shop, and the 10,000 square feet Rolling Mill Administrative Building."

"As we grow, our buildings almost need to catch up to the rate at which our programs are growing. These big grants that we've been awarded are going to go a long way to really help these facilities catch up to CMA's programmatic growth, while being super respectful of their historical significance as well," Quinn said.

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