During a ceremony Wednesday at the new Rose Complex Conference Center that is under construction, the center’s official name was announced as the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center.

A state-of-the-art facility part of a multi-million dollar plan by the city of Tyler now has an official name.

During a ceremony Wednesday at the under-construction Rose Complex Conference Center, the center’s official name was announced as the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center.

“We are incredibly excited to express our dedication and commitment to the city of Tyler through our partnership on the new conference center,” said Brad Brookshire, CEO of Brookshire’s Grocery Co.

Brookshire said he is proud of Tyler being the “birth place” of the company. His grandfather, Wood T. Brookshire, started the company almost 94 years ago.

“He believed it was his calling to serve others through retail grocery business, but he also believed to give back to the communities that supported his stores,” Brookshire said.

Mayor Don Warren said he first approached Brookshire and told him he wanted the name of the complex to represent integrity, compassion, history and the future of the community.

“They focus on outstanding customer service and the call-to-serve spirit,” Warren said. “What I like about that the most is that’s the city of Tyler’s motto — call to serve.”

The Tyler City Council met Wednesday afternoon at the complex on Front Street for a special meeting to reveal the complex’s name that honors W.T. Brookshire. Tours also were available inside the facility following the ceremony.

The hope is that construction of the convention center will be complete in October, according to city officials.

The master plan for the new $28 million conference center was adopted by the council in July 2017, and official plans were revealed to the public in 2019. Construction began following the demolition of Harvey Hall in August.

Fitzpatrick Architects worked with the city to create the plans for the complex, and WRL General Contractors is constructing the facility.

The complex will have more than 6,000 square feet of meeting space and a 3.5-acre park at the front to serve as an inviting entrance. Included in the complex’s area are the convention center, the Rose Garden Center, East Texas State Fairgrounds, the historic Mayfair Building and surrounding areas.

Recently, the Tyler City Council approved the purchase of furniture, computer networking equipment and Wi-Fi equipment for the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center in order to have it in by October.

The enclosure should be completed by the end of June or early July, Deputy City Manager Stephanie Franklin previously told the Tyler Morning Telegraph. Interior work then will begin.

Some exterior work includes completing road work, installing exterior steel and the installation of large brick pillars around the complex.

“The hope for the community is that (the Rose Complex) significantly increases the number of visitors to our community and the economic impact that’ll have on our community,” Franklin previously said. “One of the things we have been in dire need of is a conference center that’s better functioning, that is more modern, so we are excited that we are building a state of the art facility.”

The project is funded through hotel occupancy tax funds, bonds, cash payments, private donations and half-cent sales tax funds, according to the city.