FirstBank knows all about investing, so when the Colorado-based bank looked to invest in a community in 1963, it picked what is now Lakewood.
Fifty-three years later, FirstBank reinvested in the city again.
On June 6, the bank completed the first phase of construction on its new $50 million, four-story corporate headquarters at 12345 W. Colfax Ave.
"We've had employees in four different locations before this," said Jim Reuter, chief operating officer of FirstBank. "We're going to have everyone here when this project is done, because we believe teamwork works better when we're under one roof."
The site has been owned and used by FirstBank since 1995. At the time, the structure was 60,000 square feet, and another 40,000 were added in 2003. But as the company continued to grow, a central corporate hub became the goal.
The finished new structure adds another 100,000 square feet to the original, which is also being renovated as the second phase of the project. The renovation of the old structure should be finished by year's end. The finished corporate headquarters will be the new home of 1,400 employees.
"The Firstbank headquarters expansion is a huge economic development win," wrote Nanette Neelan, Lakewood's economic development director and deputy city manager, in an email interview. "Keeping this hometown company in Lakewood, on the West Colfax Corridor --; adding jobs and capital investment --; this is the core of what economic development is all about."
The new state-of-the-art facility doesn't just embrace the latest technological advances --; it also incorporates health and wellness. Desks employees work at can be either standing or sitting, there is a brand-new fitness center, game room with table tennis, pool and arcade games, and a full-service cafe and rooftop patio.
"What many people don't realize is that we do all of our IT in-house, with around 300 employees," Reuter said. "We are competing with companies like Google for the best tech employees, and that fact is incorporated into how we designed the spaces."
To help make employees more comfortable and productive, there are also 36 conference rooms with video conference capabilities, private rooms for personal calls and one-on-one meetings, and public conference spaces throughout the building.
"Employees are our No. 1 asset here," Reuter said. "A lot of our employees call Lakewood home, just like we do, and we're glad to be here."
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/FirstBanks-new-old-home,226752
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