Saying it brings high-level amenities under one roof and creates the new environment that employers are looking for to draw workers back to the office, R&R Realty Group is ready to show off the newly remodeled Crescent Building in Urbandale.

The Business Record toured the building on Monday, ahead of next week’s official ribbon-cutting, planned for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, May 15.

The 225,000-square-foot building at 12421 Meredith Drive first opened in 2008. The three-story building in the Paragon Office Park was initially built for professional services firm Marsh McLennan.

Marsh has downsized and now occupies much of the third floor, leaving the first floor and all the second floor open for new businesses, said Adam Kaduce, president of R&R Real Estate Advisors, a division of the West Des Moines-based R&R Realty.

The $2.8 million project also presented an opportunity to create a more modern and dynamic office space by providing amenities that both employers and employees are looking for, he said.

That includes a community area with a coffee bar stocked with Starbucks products. That area also provides access to an outdoor patio area with seating. There is also a conference room, a training and event room that is able to seat 100, a fitness room, and a mother’s room. The amenities will be available to all the building’s tenants.

The building also provides storage for businesses and a dock area for companies to ship and receive materials and products.

The amenities the building now provides check a lot of boxes for employers as they continue to bring employees back to the office, said Paul Rupprecht, executive vice president of R&R Realty Group.

“At the end of the day, what employers are wanting their employees to have is the ability to do that,” he said. “[Employees] can work from home, and if they want them here, they have to provide that dynamic of saying I can get Starbucks and go sit outside. I can go meet with a couple of my colleagues and maybe do some team strategizing. They like it. It works.

Kaduce said the majority of R&R Realty’s customers are back in the office three to four days a week and need more collaborative space.

“Being able to deliver that for them has been a big priority,” he said.

There are more drop-in zones and soft seating. And amenities like a fitness room and coffee counter are important to meeting people’s needs.

“It really comes down to do you have a variety,” Kaduce said. “Different people have different priorities, so how do you deliver that variety for people?”

Rupprecht said location is also important for companies, and the Crescent building’s proximity makes it an attractive location.

“It’s almost a central location, it’s right along the Urban Loop with quick access, but it’s close by where the labor pools are,” he said. “Make it convenient. Make it easy for them to come to the office. They don’t have to drive across town or battle into parking ramps.”

Kaduce said bringing amenities into a building may be easier in a suburban space compared to a downtown location.

“We have properties in the East Village. The thing people love about it is they can park their car and everything’s within a couple of block area,” he said. “The suburbs just aren’t set up for that. People love [the suburbs] because their commutes are shorter, but it’s more of a destination, so we’ve tried to bring some of those amenities into the building. So what would be a short drive or walk to, we have here. That’s where we’ve tried to accommodate that. You may have to do less of that in an urban environment because it’s in a neighborhood, so we’ve tried to bring some of those things in the building so people don’t have to leave or get in their car. They’re already here.”

Kaduce said there are opportunities for tenants who need 5,000 square feet to 6,000 square feet on the first floor. The second floor is wide open and provides about 75,000 square feet, he said.

Marsh occupies most of the third floor, but there is some space available there, too, Kaduce said.

“This is one more great project in the Urban Loop and elevates that office experience for people who want to be here, who like this area,” he said. “We’re bullish on it. We believe in this area and we think there’s a lot of employers out there that do, too.”