Town of Elberta makes offer on Regions Bank building

By Jessica Vaughn
Posted 2/22/21

ELBERTA - The Town of Elberta council voted unanimously to approve Mayor Jim Hamby to make an offer of $250,000 for the Regions Bank building located on the corner of Highway 98 and Main Street. It …

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Town of Elberta makes offer on Regions Bank building

Posted

ELBERTA - The Town of Elberta council voted unanimously to approve Mayor Jim Hamby to make an offer of $250,000 for the Regions Bank building located on the corner of Highway 98 and Main Street. It was recently announced the branch would be closing in May 2021 and the building would be going up for sale.

The town was contacted by the real estate agent to inquire about their interest in purchasing the building for $250,000. The appraisal on the building and land came in at $315,000. Other interested parties have made offers on the location, and if the town’s offer is declined, Hamby says they cannot afford to enter into a bidding war. Plans are to aim for a closing date on or around June 4, shortly after Regions ceases operations within the branch.

“I think it’s a good idea to purchase the building, and we have money in two different accounts,” said councilmember Steve Kirkpatrick. “If they accept the offer, we could pay them cash for it and it wouldn’t hurt us at this time.”

If purchased, the building would be used for a new Town Hall location. Office staff would begin operating out of the new location, as Hamby says they are running out of room in the current offices.

Regions is located directly beside the current town hall. The bank’s drive-thru window and walk-up window would both be utilized for citizens to pay bills. Hamby says while the feature will always be beneficial, it would be extremely so during COVID-19 times and offer a safe way to make transactions. In post-COVID times, he says the feature would remain an added convenience for citizens.

The current location of Town Hall, 13052 Main Street, would remain in operation to hold court and council meetings. The largest back office would be used as a conference room, with the smaller offices in use as needed.

“For me, I would like to see it be a yes amongst us just because this is one of the oldest buildings in the community,” said councilmember Vicky Helms Norris. “God forbid somebody who has no interest other than personal interest buy it, knock it, create something of their own. There’s a full downstairs that’s the length of the building that was the original town fallout shelter during the war. The historical factor alone, and then squaring up the town property … There’s a lot of history in that building that would be really sad if it fell into the wrong hands.”

To learn more about the Town of Elberta, visit https://townofelberta.com.