The St. Lawrence Arts & Community Center is owned and operated by the non-profit corporation Friends of the St. Lawrence Church, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization created in 1996 to restore the historic St. Lawrence Church and return it to use to its community. The Friends of the St. Lawrence Church has a 3-part mission:
- Arts and Culture: creating an affordable and accessible venue for diverse offerings of performance arts - theater, dance, music, film, meetings and workshops;
- Neighborhood and Community: adding activity, entertainment, cultural enrichment, social interaction, renovation and investment that serve both the surrounding low-income neighborhood of Munjoy Hill as well as the residents of Greater Portland.
- Historic Preservation: rehabilitating this local and national landmark with the adaptive reuse of an arts and community center.