COVER STORY
Open for Business: The Long-Awaited Arrival of RASM North
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ASM is proud and excited to announce that the highly anticipated RASM North office is now in the final stages of completion and scheduled for a soft opening in July, with a Grand Opening celebration to follow on August 5. This facility and the extraordinary work involved in making it a reality, is the embodiment of RASM’s long-term commitment and dedication to members in Manatee County. In May 2020, RASM purchased an office building that was being used by CenterState Bank located at 2901 Manatee Ave. West in Bradenton and began the process of making massive renovations, working with Suarez Architecture and Halfacre Construction Company. Construction and design plans completely transformed the building from an aged, out-of-date office building, into a fresh, modern, first-class facility. In addition to the existing facility on Cattlemen Road in Sarasota, the building is the second, full-sized RASM member facility, serving Realtors® and the local community. Ironically this building was the former Manatee Association of REALTORS® building, so in a sense, the Realtors® are coming home.
RENOVATIONS The renovations were extensive and included a full demolition of the building interior, completely transforming the building into a first-class facility. Non-structural walls were cleared, and structural walls added in order to raise the roof and ceilings, creating a more open floor plan, and increasing the overall functionality for the Association. Updates include totally new plumbing, all new electrical and HVAC 6 | ELEVATE [ JULY 2022 ]
components, and the rearranging of interior walls and office spaces. Interior Designer Ana Santa Maria of Apex-Studio Santa Maria was charged with designing and specifying the interiors. This included new highend-porcelain tiles and carpet tile flooring throughout. Beautiful quartz countertops were installed throughout. Sophisticated fixtures and ceiling details were added to the conference rooms, along with totally new restroom and kitchen facilities and all new furnishings. “With the beauty created by the architecture, it was important to have cohesiveness from the exterior to the interior,” said Ana Santa Maria, Principal, Apex-Studio Santa Maria. “For this reason, the clean lines, the color palette used throughout, and the simple furniture lines were incorporated into the interior design.” Exterior modifications include a new façade including parapets and stucco, a new storefront, doors and windows, fresh paint, expanded and repaved parking, and drought-tolerant, sustainable landscaping. “Suarez Architecture was tasked with creating an iconic building that represents the forward movement that is embodied in the spirit of RASM,” said Javi Suarez, Principal, Suarez Architecture. “This completely remodeled building at 2901 Manatee Avenue West has been converted to include a new double-winged auditorium space, conference rooms, member store, a central lobby, and offices for the RASM North headquarters. In the initial plans, Suarez Architecture aimed to carry some of the sloped forms of the RASM South office in Sarasota to create a continuum between both properties. However, the different buildings required unique treatment. The architectural language
