The creators behind North Bend Art & Industry are now creating a multi-disciplinary maker space unlike anything the Snoqualmie Valley has seen.

Art & Industry, a 501(c)(3) founded in 2018, has moved into and is renovating its new Center for Creativity at 1533 Bendigo Blvd. N. The 13-person board of directors hopes to provide access to as many arts as possible, from writing to woodworking, sewing and cooking.

The move is a big step up for Art & Industry, which quickly outgrew its first maker space, a windowless conference room in downtown North Bend.

“But we could afford it, and we needed our own space,” said co-founder Deb Landers. “It, too, was a jump start, and then this is a jump start for more.”

Art & Industry has more construction to do on the space and will likely have its grand opening over the summer, but it is already offering classes out of its new maker space. More information can be found at northbendartandindustry.org.

“We’re going to be in chaos until who knows when, but it’s usable space that we can hold classes and have meetings and gatherings,” Landers said.

Along with classes, Art & Industry has regular meetups. Every third Wednesday of the month, there is a general makers meetup from 5 to 8 p.m. Every second and fourth Tuesday, there is a youth writer’s group at the Snoqualmie Library from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The second Wednesday of each month, writers can drop in for a monthly write-in from 6 to 7:30 p.m. And every Thursday starting in April, there will be a teen maker time from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

The board hopes that having programs in the midst of construction will encourage people to volunteer their time as well. Regular volunteers include the board and the members of the communications, curriculum and fundraising committees, but Art & Industry is always looking for an extra set of hands.

“We are a mighty team but small,” Landers said. “Volunteers run our organization.”

This new era for Art & Industry is made possible by a grant from Doors Open, a King County 4Culture program. The nonprofit received a little over $100,000, “which is a big deal for us,” Landers said. But, being a facilities-based grant, the money is specifically for renovation costs and will run out fast.

Art & Industry also received a Sustained Support grant from 4Culture, which is for operating expenses and, essentially, keeping the lights on. That grant provides about $25,000 per year, with a cost of living adjustment each year.

The Doors Open grant is guaranteed for five years, while Sustained Support is for three years, so the board is already thinking of how to efficiently use the funds for future projects.

One day, Art & Industry hopes to own its maker space. If and when its current landlord decides to sell, Art & Industry will have first dibs on purchasing the property as part of its leasing agreement.

But that’s a long way off: “We need to make sure we manage this space first,” Landers said.

For now, Art & Industry is focusing on all the things it can do with its new space. A lot of the studio equipment will be mobile, Landers said, so the main gathering space can be converted for various purposes. The priorities include a textile studio (with looms, sewing machines and cutters) and a stained glass studio, classes for which are already on the books for late summer.

But a lot of the maker space’s future depends on the interests of the community who uses it. The board’s goal is to provide art resources not yet available in the Snoqualmie Valley.

“This space is for our community,” Landers said. “This is not a for-profit. This is for our community, and as we grow, we can offer more and more things for our community. That’s really the whole mission.”

A model of what the new North Bend Art & Industry maker space will look like when renovations are complete. Grace Gorenflo/Vally Record