A Colorado Springs architecture firm with more than five decades of local history has joined forces with a national brand, expanding its resources while pledging to maintain its community roots.

RTA Architects, which has operated in Colorado Springs for 51 years, announced on Aug. 4 a merger with the Connecticut-based SLAM Collaborative. RTA's team of 45 employees will join the roughly 280 at SLAM, which maintains offices in Denver, Atlanta, Orlando, and Los Angeles, among other cities.

RTA is responsible for local landmarks including the Pikes Peak Visitors Center and the Hybl Sports Medicine and Performance Center at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. The firm was also behind the renovation of the Space Foundation's Discovery Center, renovations at Ridgeway Elementary School, Pikes Peak Hospice and Palliative Care, and the St. Francis Hospital tower expansion. RTA is also currently doing design work on the Douglass Valley Elementary School rebuild.

Both firms recognized they could share assets that benefit both organizations, said Doug Abernathy, a former president of RTA and one of nine owners. "We have very similar goals and a very similar approach to practicing architecture and supporting a community … We're still very connected to Colorado and Colorado Springs," Abernathy said, adding that SLAM viewed that connection as a strength. Abernathy and the other owners of RTA will "continue local leadership" while playing a role in SLAM's "national direction and strategy," according to a press release from SLAM.

RTA will continue to impact the state and city's built environment, potentially with greater support from the national network, and the merger gives the firm a greater ability to learn from national partners and bring new practices to Colorado, Abernathy said.

The merger is atypical in at least one respect: rather than resulting in layoffs, RTA hired a new employee immediately after the deal closed, Abernathy said. Though RTA already employs six interior designers, Abernathy noted that having an additional talented designer on staff whom the firm could mentor and train could provide long-term benefits for both the local and national offices. The merger also provides more resources and stronger connections with offices nationwide, giving RTA the ability to "bring talent to Colorado Springs," he said.

How the combined firm's expanded national footprint will shape future project work in the Pikes Peak region remains to be seen as the two organizations begin integrating their operations.