ABA Banking Journal - September 2007 - (Page 32)

COVER STORY AMALGAMATED BANK State program makes a difference O ne of the key arteries linking Manhattan and the borough of Queens in New York City, is the 59th Street Bridge, spanning the East River. On the Manhattan side of the massive structure, there’s been a branching battle beyond belief in recent years. In the neighborhood at the other end of the span—a neighborhood known as Queensbridge—there hadn’t been a branch built in years. In a sense, you could say the entire area was “unbanked.” The neighborhood—part of the larger district of Long Island City—includes Queensbridge Houses, the nation’s largest housing project, with 15,000 residents, and Ravenswood Houses, another large project, both operated by the New York City Housing Authority. The thousands of residents of these units are predominantly black and Hispanic. There was no bank within a mile of the neighborhood. One survey found more than one third of the area’s residents had never used a bank account. Branch manager Josh André keeps his new branch open long hours in hopes of attracting the unbanked residents of Queensbridge. ing the merger of the clothing workers and two other unions, and it is the country’s only bank fully owned by a union. It has branches in three of the five boroughs of New York and one each in California, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. Unusual bank takes a challenge In April of this year, things began to change when Amalgamated Bank, based in Manhattan, turned a former fast-food restaurant into an attractive new branch, complete with a drive-up window, ATMs, extended hours, and Josh André, a veteran city branch banker who came out of retirement to become branch manager of Amalgamated’s outreach. The Queensbridge branch is only the second Queens office for $4.6 billion-assets Amalgamated. The bank was one of several banks that Queens community leaders reached out to in an effort to bring banking back to the neighborhood. This was a natural choice because the bank was founded in 1923 by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, and still markets itself as “America’s Labor Bank.” Today it is owned by UNITE HERE, represent32 SEPTEMBER 2007/ABA BANKING JOURNAL Using a government tool Nearly a decade ago, New York State acknowledged that bringing people a bank or branch where others had departed, or never been, represents a challenge. So the state created the “Banking Development District” concept in 1998, specifically as a means of bringing banking to the unbanked. The program is administered by the New York State Banking Department and requires financial institutions and local government to jointly apply for designation of a location as a banking development district. Long Island City was one of 11 areas identified as potential sites for these special districts. Amalgamated Bank, which had already opened branches in several low-income areas of New York City, applied with the county government to have the Long Island City area designated as a banking development district. Designation of a branch as part of a district brings numerous benefits, according to Peter Mosbacher, head of Amalgamated’s community development efforts. These include government deposits at below-market rates; property tax exemptions; and CRA credit. Over time, levels of some benefits are pegged to performance, Mosbacher adds. Outreach required In many ways Amalgamated has been breaking new ground: getting previously unbanked folks to come to the bank. Mosbacher notes that just opening the doors isn’t enough. The bank has gone out to community organizations, partnering and presenting financial education workshops and conducting on-site account openings to connect with the community. Long Island City residents are being offered packages Amalgamated is offering to both businesses and consumers throughout its branches, a deal where the more services the customer starts, the more cash rewards they get AMALGAMATED BANK continued on page 38 www.ababj.com/subscribe.html PHOTO BY EDWIN G. CADIZ http://www.amalgamatedbank.com http://www.banking.state.ny.us http://www.banking.state.ny.us http://www.amalgamatedbank.com http://www.ababj.com/subscribe.html

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ABA Banking Journal - September 2007

Contents Editor's Column Briefing: Why Money Sense is a Top Priority Briefing: Sleight of Mind Briefing: Snapshot: What the First Half Tells Us About the Second Half Briefing: ABA Resources ABA Chairman’s Position Briefing: Get Away and Get Ahead: ABA's Banking Leaders Forum Community Banking: Trim the Fat: Winning the "Battle of the Buck" Community Banking: Pass the Aspirin Cover Story: Meeting the Challenge of the "Unbanked" Bank Marketing: Don't Miss the Boom! On the Job: Time to Power Up Your Presentations? Insurance Sales: The Art & Craft of Cross Selling Tech Topics: The Price is Right? Tech Topics: Security: Protect Information First Tech Topics: Hackers for Hire? You Bet'cha Tech Topics: Case in Point: Tellers Scan, Too, at First Federal Compliance Clinic: Adverse Action Clarified The Economy Banker’s Mart To Advertise/Index of Advertisers

ABA Banking Journal - September 2007

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