Sunshine Dance Project to move into bigger Glen Ellyn space

GLEN ELLYN – The Sunshine Dance Project Studio has been given the green light to move into a bigger space in downtown Glen Ellyn.

Village trustees on July 25 approved a special use permit to allow the dance studio to move from its current 1,190-square-foot space at 460 N. Main St. to the 1,900-square-foot former Run Today space at 515 Crescent Blvd. The new space is across the street from its current location.

Sunshine Dance Project owner Sheri Dahl told village officials her business has grown in the past five years. The studio currently sees between 250 and 300 students, and Dahl said that could grow to 400 students in the new building.

"It is impossible to keep the business's momentum with one dance room, and we have been looking to expand for three years," Sheri and Tom Dahl said in a statement to village officials. "With the potential for a larger space, we are hoping to allow for less people to be stuck on wait lists and more people able to take classes at Sunshine."

The new building also will alleviate some of the traffic congestion at Sunshine's current location. The bigger space will allow Sunshine to have an additional dance room along with a larger waiting area that would include a retail component, Glen Ellyn Planning and Development Director Staci Hulseberg said.

"Classes would generally last 30 to 60 minutes, allowing parents time to patronize nearby businesses before picking up their child," Hulseberg said.

Sunshine plans to be in the new building by the time the fall season starts in late September or early October.