MacArts is run by the Duncan MacKinnon Music and Arts Trust - a charitable organisation inspired by the visionary spirit of Duncan MacKinnon, a prominent Borders promoter who brought high profile acts to the Scottish Borders in the 1960s. The Trust was formed in December 2011 to fulfil an ambition to create a state-of-the-art theatre, music and arts venue in the former St Andrew's Arts Centre, a disused listed building of historic and architectural significance in the centre of Galashiels; this space is now known as MacArts.