Marquette Savings Bank of Erie has announced plans to sell one of its two banking properties in Meadville to a neighboring nonbank company.
The bank intends to sell its drive-thru branch at 349 North St. to Country Fair Inc., the Erie-based convenience store chain. The branch will close at 6 pm on March 29.
Country Fair Inc., with 72 convenience stores located in Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York, has two locations in the Meadville area.
Country Fair locations are at 18163 Conneaut Lake Road in Vernon Township and 333 North St., the intersection of North and North Main streets, in Meadville. Its North Street location abuts Marquette's self-service office on North Street.
“Country Fair has been exploring the potential for additional parking and storage at its location at North and Main streets,” Steve Danch, president of Marquette’s board of directors, said in a statement.
Country Fair Inc. officials did not respond to emails and phone messages from the Meadville Tribune on Thursday and Friday seeking comment on their plans or a timeline for any changes.
On Jan. 18, the Meadville Zoning Hearing Board approved a special exception request for 349 North St. to serve as additional parking and additional storage space for Country Fair's North Street location. Approval of the special exception was required in order to move forward with the possible sale of the land.
Marquette will maintain its full-service walk-in and drive-thru location in Meadville at 1075 Park Ave., Danch said. The two bank branches are about three-quarters of a mile apart.
“With a full-service Marquette branch located near Park Avenue, this sale offers Marquette the opportunity to support and benefit the Meadville community while maintaining a strong presence to serve our customers here,” Danch said.
No banking jobs will be lost as North Street employees can move to other Marquette locations in the Meadville area, Danch said.
In addition to Park Avenue, the bank has another full-service office in the Meadville area at 16272 Conneaut Lake Road in Vernon Township.