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Construction Camera
Check back soon and watch us grow!
A camera will provide an online view of our construction site 24/7.
Please e-mail
Lesly Rascoe to sponsor our online camera. Several sponsorship levels are available.
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The Greater Waco Chamber broke ground April 11 on its NEW HEADQUARTERS building at 101 S. Third St. at Heritage Square.
The two-story, 13,916-square-foot facility is slated to be a marketing center for Greater Waco where the Chamber can showcase our region
to prospective businesses, investors and consultants considering a Central Texas location.
The building, made possible by the Challenge Greater Waco Campaign, will be owned by the Waco Chamber of Commerce Community Development Foundation.
The building has been designed to accommodate the scores of committees and task forces that advance the organization’s comprehensive economic, community and organization development agenda.
The location at Heritage Square was selected to help kick-start the redevelopment of the two blocks straddling Austin Avenue across from City Hall where SWB Heritage Square Partners will construct a multiuse project to include residential, retail and office space.
The Chamber building’s Third Street facade will have large, retail-style windows, contributing to an interesting, urban feel of the development. Other buildings in the block will front on Third, Franklin, Fourth and Austin. The east façade opens into Heritage Square.
The Chamber is leasing the site from the City of Waco.
A GREEN BUILDING
The Chamber will seek to be the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified building in Central Texas.
LEED emphasizes state-of-the-art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. Developing a LEED building also can contribute to changing perceptions about Waco which is one of the goals in our strategic economic development plan.
Building a green building for Waco’s economic development organization shows that we are also committed to the environment and protection of our natural resources, and that suggests that this is a forward thinking community.
James G. Vaughan Jr.
Chamber President / CEO
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The Chamber’s architect, Waco-based RBDR Architects designed one of only 15 LEED-certified buildings in the state, the Hampton Illinois Branch Library in Dallas.
Keith Bailey, principal of the firm, said natural lighting, recycling and energy and water conservation are just some examples of how the Chamber facility will meet the stringent requirements to earn the LEED designation.
INSIDE THE BUILDING
The building is sure to be a significant gathering place for business and community leaders. The two largest of the building’s five conference rooms will open onto the park so when we have announcements or events we can move between the park and the Chamber building.
The interior is designed to be as impressive as the exterior of the building. The gallery is an open space where renderings and models of future development will showcase the changing look of the community.
A sweeping staircase connects the first and second floors, and skylights and a clerestory bring light into the interior of the building.
Current plans call for the building to be occupied in spring 2008. |
