Watonga will soon sport a new look on its highway frontage as Bank7 builds a state-ofthe- art facility to replace the building on Prouty and A Street.
According to Greg France, president of the Watonga and Geary branches of Bank7, the move should be totally seamless for its customers. The old bank will close its doors on Friday and the new facility will open on Monday, he said.
The exact dates for that are still fluid, but the general plan is for construction to begin before the end of 2023 and the new facility to open by fall 2024, just about a year away.
It will occupy the south portion of the block between Prouty and Noble which will allow for the building and plenty of parking.
The parking is paramount to the new location, since France expects the new location will pull in more traffic from the highway, both from customers and those drivers passing by on the way to another town who may need to use the ATM.
“We will have a more visual presence and increased traffic because of the new location,” he said.
Karrie Beth Little, City Manager for the city of Watonga, was especially appreciative of the work it took on the part of the bank employees to make the deal come together.
'I think the new building is a great investment in the City of Watonga, and the highway frontage is a beautification improvement. Thank you Bank7, Greg France and the employees for your commitment to Watonga,' she said.
The existing building and banking system is already secure, France noted, but he believes physical site security will be enhanced because of the new technology included in the new build.
Plans are to sell the existing building once the build and move is completed, France said. There has already been some interest, but there hasn’t been any marketing done for the site.
There are no major changes planned for the Geary branch of Bank7. France said it has undergone upgrades and improvements through the years, while remaining open.