BKD prepares to break ground on new HQ

Over the next year, the Springfield-based accounting firm’s Federal Reserve-inspired headquarters building will take shape at the southwest corner of John Q. Hammons Parkway and St. Louis Street. The 1.8-acre site previously served as parking for University Plaza Hotel and Convention Center.

BKD’s soon-to-be landlord, Kansas City-based design-build firm Opus Northwest LLC, is slated to start construction on the four-story office building in September. BKD’s corporate offices will occupy the top floor, and its Springfield practice unit will inhabit the building’s second and third floors for a grand total of more than 80,000 square feet. The 23,000-square-foot ground floor will be leased to smaller office tenants.

Click here for a look at the full project rendering.

Opus Northwest has inked a 15-year lease with BKD, which expects to move into the office building next fall. That’s a relief for John Wanamaker, partner in charge of the firm’s Springfield practice unit.

“Frankly, we’re busting at the seams,” he said. “We’re having to make some changes just to get by. We’ve got 14 people starting this summer.”

BKD’s 300-plus employees occupy some 65,000 square feet on seven of the 22 floors in Hammons Tower. The accounting firm was one of the tower’s first tenants when it opened in August 1987.

The new office building has been designed with a variety of environmentally friendly features, including a white roof, window tinting and mechanisms to reduce water usage. Opus Northwest officials said the features – in addition to construction practices aimed at minimizing and recycling waste – should qualify the building for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The total cost of the project will exceed $20 million, said Dave Harrison, vice president of real estate development for Opus Northwest.

See SBJ’s July 14 issue to learn more about BKD’s new headquarters building.