VBA Journal

SPR 2017

The VBA Journal is the official publication of The Virginia Bar Association.

Issue link: http://vba.epubxp.com/i/815343

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 23 of 42

SPRING 2017 • 19 T he legal environment has changed dramatically in a generation, and the VBA is responding. is year, the association embraces its tradition as well as its future by moving to a new space complete with a member center and new technology for members to work, learn, and network. is lawyers' home away from the office will be the ultimate association member benefit — and one not offered to this degree by any other statewide bar group in Virginia. "Providing a co-working space, or incubator, dressed up as a bar center is an invaluable asset for the association dedicated to being that partner [for life] for all Virginia lawyers, wherever their careers take them," said James Patrick Guy II, immediate past VBA president. During Guy's term the VBA negotiated and signed the lease for a ninth-floor site in the Bank of America Center in Richmond. More than half of the 7,300-square-foot suite will be devoted to this member center for members. "If you have 45 minutes downtown between appointments and want to stop in to recharge or respond to email, or if you need to book eight hours of meetings, both things are encouraged," said Tamara Van Meter, a principal at Richmond de- sign firm SMBW, which per- formed space planning and designed the interior. "For bar activities and non-bar Richmond activi- ties, I intend to be there," said VBA President David S. Mercer of MercerTrigiani. "It'll be my office away from my Alexandria office." e new member home [under construction at press time for this issue] has been dubbed "VBA on Main." RGI General Contractors projects substantial completion of the new VBA headquarters late this summer. e VBA plans to showcase the new facility in grand opening celebrations reaching numerous segments of Virginia's legal community. Its location in the central business district, at 1111 E. Main St., places it within easy walking distance of state and federal courthouses and regulatory offices. "e new bar center presents un- precedented opportunities, not only for younger bar members needing a 'crash pad' when in Richmond, but for re-energized cooperation between the VBA and other voluntary bars throughout the commonwealth," said R. Peyton Mahaffey, a member of the Board of Governors and a principal at McCandlish & Lillard, P.C., in Fairfax. Additionally, a large conference room will allow the 25-member VBA Board of Governors to meet on-site for the first time. Set up lecture-style, 49 lawyers can be seated in the boardroom. e room's design, however, also makes use of a glass operable wall that can expand seating into the lounge. Social events that utilize the entry, lounge, and largest conference room together can accommodate 119 people. VBA on Main will be the new pub- lic face of the VBA, said Board of Governors Chair Richard E. Garriott Jr. of Pender & Coward, P.C., in Virginia Beach. e member center "will be a great opportunity, not just for members to have a 'home away from home' in Richmond, but for the VBA to host section meetings, seminars, and groups in our own space." Members will be able to reserve the boardroom and four conference rooms The VBA's new office will have an open lobby and front porch space, which will promote socializing among bar members, and conference rooms and carrels for work. Floor plan courtesy of SMBW. with wall-mounted flat-screen monitors that accommodate four or six people for section, committee, or other collabo- rative gatherings, or for client meetings. One room is separate from the others for instances in which a member taking multiple depositions at VBA on Main does not want those

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of VBA Journal - SPR 2017