Old National says to bank on it staying in downtown
Vowing to not only stay in Greencastle but to commit to continued investment in the downtown, Old National Bank has announced plans for a new 3,000-square-foot-facility.
Former Greencastle resident Dan Doan, who is currently regional chief executive officer for Old National, joined Old National Bank Regional President Bob Smith in sharing that news with local bank employees, Greencastle Mayor Bill Dory and the Banner Graphic.
“We’re here to send the message and tell the public, ‘We’re here to stay,’” Doan told the Banner Graphic.
The new facility will be built basically where the Old National parking lot is at present, Doan said of the Washington-Vine street area.
Smith said the bank will continue to operate in the present facility until the new building is ready, which they see happening in 2020.
At that point attention will turn to marketing the older historic facility at 1 N. Indiana St.
“Our intention is to work with the mayor and a developer to redevelop the present property,” Doan said. “And we know that may take some time.”
The original idea, Doan said, was that someone would redevelop the exising bank building and Old National would become a tenant in part of its sprawling confines. However, Old National couldn’t find the right situation, he said, and moved on to Plan B.
Now they believe it might be redeveloped as a mix use of retail and residential in a continuation of what else has been successful downtown since the Stellar Grant lit a fire under things in 2011.
“We were not only committed to staying in Greencastle,” Doan said, “but we really wanted to work it out to stay in the downtown because we knew it was not only important for the city but to the university.”
At one time Old National considered the possibility of a different site, Doan said, but its heart remained in the downtown.
The bank’s corporate facilities manager made 11 trips to Greencastle to ponder the possibilities, Doan said, “and I don’t know how many phone calls have been made about this. We started working on this five years ago.”
Ultimately the change will see them vacate a building that is quite a bit chopped up with upper floors that are shut off and some areas only accessible by a ladder, Doan said.
“That made it hard to operate our relationships banking model,” he said, meaning how the bank “interacts with clients as they come into the lobby.”
And the positive gains seen overall for Old National?
“Primarily,” Doan assured, “it underscores our investment in the community and our commitment to staying. Our reputation of staying in the community is very important to us.”
A branch of Old National Bank -- most notably First Citizens Bank& Trust Co. -- has been operating in Greencastle since 1862.
Old National, which was founded in 1834 and is based in Evansville, has more than 150 retail branches.