MILTON — The Santa Rosa County Chamber of Commerce has outgrown its 35-year-old building, according to Chamber President Donna Tucker. Now, it’s raising funds to build new headquarters on Avalon Boulevard, across the street from Avalon Baptist Church.
The chamber has raised $334,000, 40 percent of the total needed for "Project Welcome." As the chamber nears its goal, there would be sponsorship opportunities for donations between $500 and $100,000, Tucker said. She said, "$100,000 will get your name on the building."
Chamber officials have discussed the need for expansion since 2008, Tucker said. The current Stewart Street location has 15 parking spots; the boardroom can hold 23 people. The new building will also be safer, Tucker said. Currently, the boardroom sits near the middle of the building while the new design places the boardroom in the corner for after-hours meetings.
Tucker said the chamber first worked with the city of Milton to find a location but couldn't find one with enough visibility and parking. Avalon Boulevard looked attractive, she said, because it's a corridor for tourism traffic. Research into the intersection for the Santa Rosa courthouse study substantiated the decision as it showed Avalon Boulevard and Highway 90 would become a new hub for business in the county, Tucker said.
The new building will be based on the Asa May House, a plantation home located in Capps, Fla., part of the National Register of Historic Places.
Archie Collum, head partner of Peter Prince Airport, brought the design to the chamber's building committee members, who all liked the building’s look as similar to Santa Rosa County's historic structures, Tucker said.
Collum redesigned the house to meet the chamber's needs, negotiated the parcel on Avalon Boulevard, and secured 40,000 square feet of "pure heart pine harvested and cut in the county," he said.
So, when does it open?
"Our goal is to turn the key in the door by midsummer of 2017. It will be one of the biggest celebrations Santa Rosa County has seen,” Tucker said.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Santa Rosa chamber eyes new building