PROVIDENCE – BankNewport plans to open its first Providence branch, to be located at 55 Dorrance St. in the city’s Financial District, in late June, bank sources said. Plans are in the works for a second Providence branch to open in November on South Angell Street.
Designed by architect Rod Topolewski of Brown Lindquist Fenuccio & Raber Architects Inc. and built by Farrar & Associates Inc., the new location on Dorrance Street will be a full-service branch with personal teller machines providing extended hours.
“The Providence market will create a lot of growth opportunity for us,” said Mary Leach, executive vice president and director of consumer relationships for BankNewport. “Based on the progress the bank is making, the time is right” to open a branch in Providence.
The staff, including a residential mortgage loan officer and a business-development officer, will have bilingual members. “We are going into a more diverse market and working with a wide array for products,” Leach said. “We feel it is important to be able to converse with all of our customers.”
The teller counter has been replaced with stations that allow customers to sit during transactions. Services will include all traditional banking transactions, along with consumer loan originations, residential mortgages, commercial lending, business banking referrals, cash management, merchant services, online banking and mobile-banking services. Customers will be able to schedule appointments with bankers online.
In addition to its retail branch, BankNewport will have an office suite on the third floor of the building for executive and commercial lending activities.
Mary Lhowe is a PBN contributing writer.
