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Date: 6/14/2022
WARE – After years of vacancy, the Country Bank location on Main Street is being donated to the town for $1, to serve as the new Ware Police Department.
On June 1, Country Bank President Paul Scully, explained that the Main Street building has been unoccupied since the start of COVID-19. “Prior to that, we had not been in it [other than the branch location] for over 10 years,” said Scully. He noted that they have been working at the South Street location.
Scully went on to say that they have maintained and continue to maintain the unoccupied space, but they wanted to find the “right purpose” for the building. He said they want to “help bring some vitality back” to the Main Street area.
“Because of COVID-19, people [have] really adapted to using technology. Everyone who feared it for the longest time, suddenly started to use it more and more. We’ve seen in all of our locations a reduction in volume of customer transactions and that we really had no plans to reopen this banking center,” said Scully.
He added that they received offers from potential investors looking to purchase the space, however they didn’t want to see the building vacant five years down the road.
Scully noted that they are “not in it for the money” but are more so focusing on bringing something beneficial to Main Street. He said that Country Bank worked together internally, including discussions with the board chair, board members and a senior team, to see what they could do with this building.
Scully explained that the Ware Police Department has been searching for a new space. However, he said the estimates to build a new station would cost anywhere from $7 to $9 million.
As this is a significant amount of money in a “down economy,” Scully said the bank wanted to assist. By meeting with members of the Ware Select Board and members of the Police Force, Scully said they tried to figure out if this move was feasible.
Town Manager Stuart Beckley said the current police department located at 22 North St. is outgrown. He said they need more space for the officers, to conduct investigations and more.
Scully explained that the structure on Main Street is fairly large, with the building serving as the Ware Savings Bank and Trust, along with the old smoke shop next door which is now the Education to Employment (EDE) building. Scully described this as a “Country Bank campus.” Additionally, he said they have a bunker garage out back with more open space.
After taking a tour of the building and discussing pricing, Scully said the Select Board and Police Department expressed interest in the space.
Once the final decision was reached, Scully shared, “We’re donating the building to the town of Ware to be able to use as the next police station. We’re really excited for this.”
He believes that this station will “anchor the downtown area” and “bring more foot traffic.”
Ware Police Chief Shawn Crevier said, “We’re extremely grateful to Mr. Scully and the board members, and Country Bank as a whole. [They have] always been a huge support of the town of Ware.” He recognized the Select Board and Beckley for their efforts in making this happen.
Following the announcement, Beckley said the cost for the rehabilitation of the building is unknown. The funding for this project will need to be approved at Town Meeting, which Beckley predicts will take place by the fall.
As Country Bank is donating their building for $1 to the town, Beckley said they will “primarily start with the Police Department.”
Although the project details and rehabilitation needs have not been finalized, Beckley said the Police Department does need holding cells, a sally port, a secure entrance and more.
He suspects that it will take several months to a year before the Ware Police Department moves into the Country Bank building, as it requires town approval.