Relyance transfers to new HQ in White Hall

Relyance Bank's new headquarters is located off Interstate 530 at White Hall. (Special to The Commercial)
Relyance Bank's new headquarters is located off Interstate 530 at White Hall. (Special to The Commercial)

Vanessa Nichols shoved the dollar bills into an envelope and delivered them to the customer waiting in her car at the drive-up window.

"Thank you," the woman said.

"Yes, ma'am, you have a good day," Nichols said.

The interaction on Friday afternoon between bank customer and bank employee at Relyance Bank's headquarters at Ninth Avenue between Cherry and Poplar streets would be one of the last. In a few hours, the office doors would be locked for the last time and all operations would be transferred to the bank's sparkling new location 8500 Sheridan Road in White Hall.

At the new location, employees and contractors scurried about on Friday, taking advantage of the three-day weekend to get things ready to open the doors on Tuesday morning.

A wireless router sat in a box on a table where tellers will be stationed. Workers rolled copiers and other equipment this way and that. Employees emptied boxes as they readied their offices. Some people seemed to be ahead of the curve, while others were still getting there.

Britt Hayden, an IT worker, talked on his phone.

Can you really get things ready by Tuesday? he was asked.

"We'll be working all weekend to make it happen," he said.

Chuck Morgan, bank chairman and CEO, was wearing a golf shirt and carrying his own armload of office supplies as he walked into the new building. He had just left the Pine Bluff location, and as he proudly surveyed the almost-finished product, he noted that it was long overdue.

"I've been there for most of my 30-plus year career," he said, "and we were just out of room. We have grown so much. People were jockeying for office space."

Located off Interstate 530, the three-story, 40,000-square-foot building was designed by Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects and constructed by Clark Contractors LLC, both of Little Rock. The design infuses traditional with modern.

"I'm excited for the bank and for our people. It will be a nice, productive work environment," Morgan said.

INSIDE THE NEW BANK

After about 18 months of construction, the approximately $15 million facility was finished on-time.

"We've been fortunate," Morgan said, referencing the impact covid-19 has had on the building industry, whether on the workforce or material delays.

The first floor has a pod-type design that's universal to the banking world, along with ITMs, similar to the familiar ATMs. It also houses loan and credit offices and the call center operation.

The second floor is dedicated to the bank's trust and wealth management offices and human resources, while a boardroom and executive suites are located on the third floor.

There will be approximately 160 parking spaces for customers, guests and employees.

Previously, Morgan said the new headquarters would house about 100 employees, occupying only about 70 percent of the building. That leaves room for future growth, he said.

RESHAPING A CITYSCAPE

Relyance Bank, formerly named Pine Bluff National Bank, opened its doors in 1965 in Pine Bluff, but now, its new facility has helped change the view of White Hall from Interstate 530.

The new bank sits on about seven acres on the southwest side of Sheridan Road, with Smart Motors and Colton's Steak House & Grill sitting directly across the street.

Behind the restaurant, a new four-story TownePlace Suites by Marriott is close to completion and is expected to open by early fall, said the facility's developer and owner, Umesh Patel.

White Hall Mayor Noel Foster said he is thrilled with the upcoming opening and the future growth the bank could spur.

With the completion of the bank and hotel, Foster said the city is moving from single- to multi-story commercial buildings. This reflects a thriving, successful community and could possibly attract outsider businesses to the city and impact future growth, Foster said.

The landscape in that area has changed significantly, and what used to be vacant fields has grown into a thriving commercial hub, Foster said.

Relyance Bank was founded as Pine Bluff National Bank. The bank was rebranded as Relyance Bank in 2013 and has expanded to 20 southeast and central Arkansas locations, employing more than 200 associates. Its assets exceed $1.1 billion.

"We are excited about our contribution to the economic growth in the booming I-530 corridor of White Hall," Morgan said. "Our new facility will accommodate Relyance Bank's continued growth while more efficiently housing management and consolidating multiple departments at one site. And most importantly, the new headquarters enforces our deeply rooted community banking philosophy of delivering competitive financial services while providing exceptional customer service."

The bank focuses on providing an extensive line of products and services to meet the needs of all. The company contributes its success to remaining true to its core values with a strong belief and dedication to the communities it serves, according to a news release.

While the bank will open its doors to the public on Tuesday, a grand opening will be held later in the month.

As for the Pine Bluff location, Morgan said the bank will be leasing it to the state Department of Human Services.

"We'll do some tenant improvements for them, but this has been a very well kept building," Morgan said. "It's got security and cameras and is fully networked. I think it will serve DHS very well."

Pine Bluff Commercial Editor Byron Tate contributed to this story.

photo The new Relyance Bank headquarters at 8500 Sheridan Road will be ready for employees and customers Tuesday. (Special to The Commercial/Deborah Horn)
photo Carla McCoy Roaf hands a keyboard to Christian Young on Friday as the two IT workers get another workstation ready at the new Relyance Bank location in White Hall. (Pine Bluff Commercial/Byron Tate)
photo A worker double checks her progress on Friday as she installs a door sign with the hours of operation at the new Relyance Bank in White Hall. (Pine Bluff Commercial/Byron Tate)
photo The view from a top-floor break area at the new Relyance Bank location shows the landscape up and down Sheridan Road in White Hall. (Pine Bluff Commercial/Byron Tate)
photo Vanessa Nichols, a teller, inserts a customer's cash into an envelope on Friday, one of the last banking transactions to take place at the old Relyance Bank location in Pine Bluff. (Pine Bluff Commercial/Byron Tate)

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