State Bank of Southern Utah has begun preparations to build a new bank building for their Kanab branch, and the Branch Lending Manager Vice President Daniel Johnson provided some information on the upcoming move to a temporary business establishment while the new facility is being constructed. “Kanab has to be the second or third oldest building the bank has,” says Johnson. “We’ve been in need of a new building - we’ve had sewer flooding in the basement, what, three or four times now? So, our plan is to take this building down and build a new facility on the current location.”
Per Johnson, the bank is assessing a few different options to keep operations running during the interim while the current building is torn down and the new one is constructed. The most likely candidate is a special temporary unit designed and used by the bank for previous projects just like Kanab’s. The Kanab branch has a few locations in mind, with communication underway to potentially set up at the former Kanab Elementary School property. “These units are designed for this,” Johnson says. “The temporary building is a bank-specific module with vaults, driveups, ATMS. State Bank just went through a similar deal with Richfield, where they tore down their old building and set up a temporary. The temporary can house the safe and have all the security needed, the units are specific to the bank.”
State Bank has recently undergone a few different reconstructions similar to this one, so the company has experience with the process so far. According to Johnson, State Bank has a builder they have worked with to complete other projects in the southern Utah area, and they already have a projected timeline for the process: “Of course you never know with construction, there’s a lot that can change … but we’re hoping to have the old building down and ground broken by the end of first quarter [2024], and after that the construction team gave us a timeline of 12 - 14 months.”
In the interim, the bank’s stated priority is to have as little interruption of regular service as possible. “It’s going to be a little challenging for employees and customers but hopefully not much will change, especially when it comes to ATM’s and drive through service - that’s a high priority,” states Johnson. “The temporary will be very similar to the service we’re getting now, allowing for some kinks in the road along the way. People can still come in to the temporary and work with us there, and we’ll be doing our best to make sure not much changes as far as service goes.”
These temporary banking units, while conveniently designed, can be expensive to ship and install, and the only factor that Johnson cited as potentially changing the plan was the cost. “This is the most likely option, but nothing’s settled yet,” says Johnson.
The new facility is projected to be a two-story structure with more modern infrastructure and accommodations for some extra services the current Kanab branch does not provide. With the lower level dedicated to regular operations and accounts, the upper floor can be dedicated to lending, allowing services like mortgages to stay local rather than be redirected to other branches. According to Johnson, “The new building should be really nice, and it’ll allow us to do a lot more locally than we can now.”
Johnson concludes, “State Bank knows Kanab is growing, so we’re matching that. We’re grateful to the community and our clientele and we’re looking forward to working with everybody going forward. We appreciate everyone working with us, during the rebuild and after, once the new building’s up.”
As mentioned above, keeping service consistent and uninterrupted is State Bank’s stated priority during this project. Should the decision be finalized to bring in the temporary facility, expect announcements on locations and drive through and ATM procedures soon thereafter.
