Keeping up with the Eastside community’s growing demand for more arts programs, Studio East has found a new space to expand its creative legs.

The organization, which is currently housed in a 7,600 square foot building at 402 Sixth St. in Kirkland, is set to open the doors at its new expanded facility May 1.

“We’ve been in this location for 15 years,” said Managing Director Nikki Parish. “When we moved in here we were a tenth of the size that we are now. We’ve grown tremendously here and as we’ve grown, we’ve taken over more and more space here. We’ve pretty much maxed out and we’ve just been out of room for a good five years.”

According to the Kirkland Reporter, each year about 2,000 students ages come through the organization’s doors – and that number is growing.