GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A ribbon-cutting Monday celebrated the Grand Rapids African American Museum and Archives’ move in to a new building, a much largest space it has long needed.

The museum’s home is now at 41 Sheldon St. SE, about three blocks south of Fulton Street near downtown.

“This new home gives us the opportunity to preserve, share, and celebrate the stories of African Americans in Grand Rapids with the dignity and permanence they deserve,” GRAAMA Executive Director George Bayard said in a statement.

Grand Rapids African American Museum’s new space ‘icing on the cake,’ leaders say

The museum announced in July that it was buying a new building, something it had been working toward for years. Its former space on Monroe Center was about 2,100 square feet, including storage. The new space is 15 times bigger at 30,000 square feet.

With the extra space, GRAAMA says it can add classrooms and a library. The building — which used to house a film school — already has an auditorium, so the museum host plays, lectures, film screenings and more.

GRAAMA started as a traveling exhibit 10 years ago and moved to the Monroe location about eight years ago following an ArtPrize exhibition.