CANFIELD, Ohio – Builders confronted an immediate and unusual challenge when work began on Farmers National Bank’s new headquarters: excavating a 20-foot-deep basement directly beside one of the busiest intersections in Canfield.
The dig site ran tightly along Lisbon and Broad streets, close enough that snowplows routinely pushed snow toward the edge of the hole and crews remained alert to the possibility that a vehicle could slide or drive into it.
To stabilize the intersection, DeSalvo Construction installed extensive retaining walls until the permanent basement walls were in place. “Digging 20 feet below the road and putting in temporary shoring to keep the roads from falling in was pretty challenging,” says Mark Dodd, vice president and senior project manager at DeSalvo. “It’s a very busy intersection, and the excavation was right up against the roadways.”
The difficult conditions set the tone for what would become a two-year, logistically complex undertaking. Farmers’ original headquarters remained fully operational throughout construction, meaning crews often worked under the watchful eyes of employees on the other side of the windows. Tie-ins between the new and existing buildings were sometimes scheduled at dawn or after dark to avoid disruptions.
Beyond space constraints, the team discovered an underground fuel tank left over from a former service station. Coordinating utility protection added another layer of complexity as cranes lifted heavy steel and HVAC units over active power lines. “We had to protect the power lines so electricity didn’t arc to our cranes or lifting equipment,” Dodd says.
Several temporary road closures were required, coordinated with local police, fire officials and the school district, which rerouted bus traffic to keep congestion and safety risks to a minimum.
At peak periods, 50 to 70 tradespeople were on-site daily, and more than 20 subcontractors and suppliers contributed to the project. All were Mahoning Valley workers, a point Dodd says made the job especially meaningful for the DeSalvo team.
The bank’s leadership knew the project would be complicated, but the need for a modernized and expanded headquarters had become urgent.
Farmers’ employee base has grown steadily through a series of acquisitions. The most recent, a merger with Middlefield Bank, is the institution’s seventh in roughly a decade. Combined with evolving workplace expectations following the Covid pandemic, the existing space was no longer suitable.
“For our long-term growth strategy, the building positions us very well,” says Kevin Helmick, president and CEO of Farmers National Bank. “After Covid, the workforce changed, and so bringing our facility up to speed was critical. There’s a lot of flex space, hoteling space and room to grow.”
Farmers purchased several adjacent buildings between 2004 and 2008, using them for different purposes over the years, but Helmick says it became clear that renovating and expanding the headquarters was the best long-term solution. The bank announced the project in 2023, and employees moved into the completed facility in March 2025.
The finished 27,000-square-foot, two-story addition is both functional and symbolic. The brick exterior honors the institution’s 138-year presence on the Canfield Green, while the glass façade signals its ambitions for the future.
Inside, the building offers a blend of collaborative workspaces, hoteling areas, soft-seating zones and digitally enabled conference rooms. The rooftop includes a meeting area with picnic tables, a putting green and an outdoor kitchen.
“We say it’s a Teams building,” Helmick says. “You can reserve rooms from your iPhone or workstation, and when you walk in, it’s ready for your meeting. The flexibility and technology are important for today’s workforce.”
The building also serves as a physical representation of Farmers’ identity as a community bank rooted in history but focused on growth. Hallways are lined with historic photos, and rooms throughout the facility are named for the bank’s first six
presidents.
A history wall traces the institution’s path from its founding in 1887, when it accepted $170 on its first day and granted its first loan to a pig farmer, to its current scale as a nearly $7.5 billion company with $5 billion in wealth-management assets across two
states.
“For us, it couldn’t just be a building,” Helmick says. “It needed to embody our culture, our history and our legacy as a community bank.”
Strollo Architects designed the expansion. Despite early concerns about supply-chain delays, Helmick says the project stayed within budget and met all major targets. Glass delivery was the only area where the team encountered minor timing challenges.
For Canfield, the headquarters represents both economic stability and a long-term vote of confidence. The city cited the $9 million investment as a significant contribution to the community’s vitality and its commercial district.
Helmick emphasized that the building reinforces Farmers’ commitment to remain headquartered in Canfield. “Canfield will be our headquarters for as long as I’m here,” he says. “We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the support of this community.”
For Dodd, the project’s most rewarding achievement is one most people might not notice at all. Despite the complicated structural work and modern features, the expansion blends nearly seamlessly with the original structure.
“We built this brand-new building, and it looks like it’s always been there,” Dodd says. “From block to block, it reads as one building, and that’s exactly what we hoped to achieve.”
Pictured at top: The new two-story addition (left) blends seamlessly with the original building (right), reflecting the bank’s effort to modernize while honoring its history.