Chase Bank opened its first branch in Augusta, Thursday morning.
Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson and Georgia Sen. Harold Jones were among the local dignitaries who joined bank staff to celebrate the new location in front of Kroger on Washington Road with a ribbon-cutting and a lunch reception.
“Chase recognizes that Augusta is a vibrant and growing community, and Chase is just excited to be a part of that growing community,” said branch manager Robert Studdard. JP Morgan Chase announced in October its plans to open its first full-service CSRA branch in Augusta in spring of this year, offering wealth management and home lending services alongside regular business and consumer banking.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was preceded by a series of addresses by bank leadership, including regional director Roxann Cook, who alluded to Chase’s aim to plant roots in the Augusta area and emphasized the initial branch’s role as a kind of anchor in the community.
“Before we expand into a market, we spend the time listening, just listening to the local stakeholders, listening to the needs of what you’re looking for,” said Cook. “And I want to say ‘Hello, Augusta! We heard you!’”
Much mention was made of the roughly 70,000 Chase Bank customers already living in Augusta, who now don’t have to travel to Athens or Columbia to find a full service branch.
District 7 Augusta Commissioner Tina Slendak was also in attendance, noting that residents in her native district are welcoming the new local branch of the multinational bank.
“The people in Glenwood, National Hills, down by Lake Olmstead, Vineland and on out, they’re thrilled that you guys are here,” Slendak said.
Chase, which has more than 4,700 bank locations nationwide, plans to develop up to five or six new branches in the CSRA, on both the Georgia and South Carolina sides of the river. Another branch location is currently under construction in Aiken, and expected to open in fall of this year.
Chase Bank is located at 2805 Washington Road.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
