717 Combines Tech, Atmosphere at New Larchmont Branch

WARREN, Ohio – With no more space to grow and a growing need for more modern technology at its site on Larchmont Avenue, 717 Credit Union was in need of something new.

That the new branch with more space and the newest technology is just a stone’s throw from the credit union’s original site, said President and CEO Gary Soukenik, is something special.

“It’s right where we started,” he said at a press event Thursday. “It’s great to be in this location because we can actually see right across the parking lot where our original branch was in 1964. … It’s really all about the community.”

The branch office, 3185 Larchmont Ave. NE, will open for business at 9 a.m. Monday. It replaces the long-standing branch on Larchmont, which will be converted to office space.

“[We will] convert the old branch to additional back office space,” said vice president of marketing Eric Lanham.. “We’re kind of bursting at the seams right now for space as we’ve been growing and adding employees.”

Lanham said the new Larchmont branch is designed to provide greater convenience for their members, primarily through the addition of technology, including personal teller machines that allow face-to-face video interaction with tellers rather than simply sending deposits through a pneumatic tube to a teller a few lanes away.

“We’ve got more personal interaction. … It has allowed us to extend our hours in the drive through.” “We have a lot of advanced technology here at the branch,” he said. “We have an educational hub that was put in to provide financial education and resources to members in the branch.”

The new office was designed to be as technologically advanced as the credit union could make it, said vice president of innovation and information technology Brian Boettcher.

“We have some nice technology running the systems that you don’t see,” he said. “We can run this branch with about 2,500 watts of electricity with everything turned on.”

With the new branch being energy efficient, it holds a promising outlook and future for the new facility. Boettcher said there are no combustible materials, plenty of security features and an open floor plan throughout the office. 

“It’s very inviting, very warm and we want our members to feel like this is home,” he said. 

The branch also features a “learning hub” that provides member-interactive tablets with education tools, games, calculators, demos and more.

Facilities manager Lee Shafer said that while most banks use drawers for their cash, the new Larchmont branch will feature a money recycler for each teller. 

“Members come in, they deposit their money, it feeds right through the machine and it’s already in a safe,” he said.

In the new space, the credit union is excited, all agreed, for the opportunity to provide their members with the convenience and exceptional service they have come to expect. 

“[We are] continuing to offer area residents a strong financial option that will carry them into the future,” Soukenik said. 

In March the credit union opened its 13th branch in Canfield.

Pictured: 717 Credit Union President and CEO Gary Soukenik at the opening of the credit union’s new Larchmont Avenue branch Thursday.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.