Treasury on the Plaza blends historic charm with style

A trip to the bank didn't always look like it does today.

It was a big to-do, as people often came not only to make deposits and transactions, but also to socialize with bank tellers and others in the community. There were no drive-thrus to speed the process along.

St. Augustinian Tracy Upchurch said his memory stretches back to his childhood when he thinks of St. Augustine's downtown skyscraper ­- originally The First National Bank of St. Augustine.

Although the property was built and active before his time, he remembers it in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when his father and grandfather's offices were on the upper levels of the six-story building.

Upchurch remembers the building had a lot of distinctive features, including beautiful brass lamps, large tables in the center, numerous teller stations and just like in the movies, a huge bank vault.

"It would inspire strength, integrity and permanence, and every bank today would like to claim those adjectives," he said.

Built in 1928, the six-story property at 24 Cathedral Place boasts a mezzanine, marble flooring and more architectural details.

Today, the building still stands in the heart of the city's historic district. The upper floors are occupied by businesses such as law firms, including Upchurch's, and other companies, while the old bank area has been transformed into the Treasury on the Plaza run by Brenda Bushell.

"The bank area itself gives you a very good flavor of what I remember it as," Upchurch said.

Only skyscraper

The First National Bank of St. Augustine was downtown's first and only skyscraper.

Construction on the building first began in 1927, which is the same year the city's Bridge of Lions opened.

Its Mediterranean Revival style design is credited to St. Augustine architect F.A. Hollingsworth, the city's first preservation architect.

Hollingsworth is also credited with designing the St. Augustine Waterworks Pumping Station, completed in 1898, and Ketterlinus High School, which opened in 1928.

The noted architect went on to work for the St. Augustine Historical Society.

Unfortunately, the year after it opened, First National Bank of St. Augustine folded along with many others as part of the stock market crash of 1929, which prompted the Great Depression.

Ten years later, in 1939, the building became the Exchange bank, then Atlantic Bank and eventually First Union Bank. First Union merged with Wachovia in 2001, and Wachovia was bought by Wells Fargo in 2008. Wells Fargo occupied the building until 2013, when it moved across the Plaza de la Constitucion into the old Woolworth building.

The first time anything other than a bank had occupied the property on Cathedral Place came in 2014 with Treasury on the Plaza, owned by Brenda Bushell and John Arbizzani.

Transformation

Walking into the Treasury gives visitors a good idea of how walking into a bank in its heyday used to be.

Bushell said when she and Arbizzani acquired it, they wanted to renovate it and create an event space.

"Our mantra when we renovated it was if it's historic, we're keeping it," she said.

Renovation workers removed all of the old teller stations, creating a more open space in the former bank area, and repainted the walls and ceiling.

The original cigarette booth was transformed into a concierge counter, and Bushell said a lot of the furnishings are from her home.

One of the biggest transformations was the bank's money vault into a bar. Bushell said she kept the original 1920s flooring and other materials to create authenticity.

"Now drinks come from where the money used to go," she said.

Other historical elements, such as the numerous historic pictures that line the walls, took some digging down at the St. Augustine Historical Society.

"We were trying to create a sense of arrival, so in the foyer, we've added historical pictures," Bushell said.

Still, the building embodies the romance of the 1920s. Its banquet room showcases the original eight towering columns, marble flooring and architectural detailing.

Not just weddings

Since its opening as what Bushell calls a premier wedding venue, the Treasury on the Plaza has hosted over 120 weddings so far this year.

Bushell has a background in broadcasting and wasn't looking to get into the wedding business - but when she did, there was no going back.

"This is nice," she said. "This makes memories."

With all the success that's come with Bushell's involvement in the wedding industry, she's decided to branch out to her next venture.

Instead of focusing solely on weddings, Bushell wants to expand her venue to encompass different kinds of events.

Wednesday will launch her first such event. It will be the first installment of Women's Wednesdays' at The Treasury on the Plaza.

Presented by She Is Fierce!, Women's Wednesdays is meant to offer women a chance to network, share personal stories and words of wisdom.

Each talk, called a Fierce Talk, will be led by a new speaker each Wednesday night in June and July.

She Is Fierce! founder Kelly Youngs said she chose the Treasury to host the inaugural event because it's already considered one of St. Augustine's premier event venues.

"It's going to be so stunning for the women who come," she said.

Bushell said if this goes well, she hopes to continue it in the future.