SALISBURY, Md. – Salisbury University’s long-planned downtown performing arts center moved a step closer to reality with its inclusion in Gov. Wes Moore’s fiscal 2027 budget.
The budget allocates $63,297 in funding for the project, which is also part of Maryland’s five-year Capital Improvement Program outlining support for planning, construction and equipment between fiscal years 2028 and 2031.
The proposed center would be built in downtown Salisbury on the site of the Wicomico Public Library Paul S. Sarbanes Branch, which is expected to relocate in 2027. The project previously received $2 million in grants from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development to support site planning and demolition.
State documents estimate the total cost of the project at more than $130 million. Plans call for a facility featuring a 600- to 800-seat main auditorium, a smaller performance space, a convertible dance studio, gallery space and classrooms. The project would also include connections to nearby public areas like Unity Plaza.
The center is expected to open within the next five years and expand the university’s footprint downtown, where it already operates academic and cultural facilities.