Big bank shifts its downtown presence

The Bank of America name perched on one of the more identifiable downtown Sarasota buildings will be coming down — likely by early next year.

The bank will move from 32,000 square feet on the ground floor of the building, at 1605 Main St., to a 5,000-square-foot branch a few blocks away. The Bank of America name has topped the tower, the Ellis Building, since at least 2005. The building was built in 1972.

Sarasota-based Ruben-Holland Development signed a contract to develop the new BofA branch, which will double as the bank's local headquarters. It will go next to a newly built Staples office supply store on Fruitville Road and U.S. 301 — a heavily traveled intersection that's considered a downtown gateway. Ruben-Holland also developed the Staples.