Children’s charity Cradles to Crayons has acquired a Newtonville commercial property for $5.4 million as it prepares to relocate next year from its rented headquarters in Brighton.

The nonprofit currently leases approximately 40,000 square feet at 155 North Beacon St. in Brighton, with a lease expiring in mid-2020. After a search of the surrounding area, it settled on the 37,500-square-foot warehouse bordering the Massachusetts Turnpike at 281 Newtonville Ave.

Founded 17 years ago in Quincy, the organization needed a combination of office and program space, including its Giving Factory, where volunteers package donations of clothing and books for delivery to disadvantaged children, CEO Lynn Margherio said.

“It gives us the opportunity to design the space to really optimize our ability to serve children and provide a great volunteer experience for the community, and a great collaborative space for our team,” Margherio said. “We’ll be designing it from the ground up.”

The Newtonville property also provides more parking for Cradles for Crayons volunteers and its 35 employees.

Margherio said the organization cast a wide net looking for a location that met its requirements.

“We wanted to be in a location that would be convenient for our community, since we rely so much on volunteers to power our mission, and in a location that’s convenient for our nonprofit partners,” she said.

128CRE represented seller DBG Properties. CBRE represented Cradles to Crayons Inc.