A Message from Stan Smith, Board President

As we approach the opening of our new campus, I want to report that our vision for finishes and design is coming together with the installation of furniture which was completed last week.. As announced previously Lucy Nye, current board member, was selected to execute the furniture packages for both buildings. How did we get there? This all started July 2021. 

First, we identified the different furniture types that were needed such as administration offices, classrooms, banquet rooms, foyer, gallery benches, storage areas, and restroom refuse receptacles. From there a detailed budget was created for each room. Then the fun begins with ‘editing’ the budget so the furniture could be selected within a targeted dollar amount.  

Before the furniture could be selected a field trip to Houston occurred, August 31, 2021, with the RCA staff to furniture showrooms and art schools and museums to benchmark trends used in similar building types.  Then product research continued to meet the needs all along conforming with the budget. Lucy guided us to partner with McCoy/Rockford in Houston as they could provide a full scope of product to meet the needs of RCA. Lucy also negotiated commercial discounted pricing with McCoy/ Rockford in line with other non-profit organizations.  

Refinements continued for the estimated budget and in November 2021 the budget was presented to the board for approval. The board also suggested the creation of a furniture subcommittee to work on selections.  Refinements and designing continued and the subcommittee traveled to Houston in February to confirm the finishes. The desire initially was to submit orders in February due to issues with Supply Chain however orders were finalized and placed March 2022.   

The original install date was mid-August and then pushed to September and the final delay pushed the installation to October 17, 2022. All parties involved with the installation provided impeccable service from commercial furniture sourced from various places to custom designed and locally fabricated furniture. Finally a ceramic studio equipment package and a culinary fixtures and Equipment package to outfit both kitchens.were selected 

We are excited about opening our doors and sharing our vision with you in person.

Yours,
Stan Smith