On Commerce Road –

Union Savings Hopes To Secure Its Place In Newtown At Its New Location

By Kaaren Valenta

In 1866 a group of Danbury merchants and civic leaders, including hat factory owner Elijah Sturdevant, founded Union Savings Bank.

Last week Elijah Sturdevant’s great-great-great grandson, Richard L. Sturdevant, the newly elected chairman of the bank’s board of trustees, joined with USB President and CEO Charles F. Frosch to cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the newly relocated branch office on Commerce Road in Newtown.

“I think we are unique in today’s banking environment to not only have the same name on the front door but also to have someone from a founding father’s family still involved in providing leadership to what has become the premier community bank in this region,” Mr Frosch said.

Headquartered in Danbury, Union Savings Bank is an $840 million mutual bank serving western Connecticut with 15 offices in Bethel, Brookfield, Danbury, Kent, New Fairfield, Newtown, New Milford, Ridgefield, and Sharon.

Before USB moved to Commerce Road in February, the branch was located in much smaller quarters in the shopping plaza at the corner of Church Hill Road and Queen Street. Completely renovated, the new USB branch office offers more lobby space, more parking, more customer service representatives, and an ATM machine.

“It will help us improve our service to our growing number of customers in Newtown,” Mr Frosch said.

Mr Sturdevant agreed.

“It’s a much better location – much more accessible,” he said. “With Newtown’s growth, this is a very desirable place to be. Our move indicates that we want to be a presence in Newtown.”

USB has grown rapidly in the past 12 to 15 years.  First it purchased three branches of the Bank of Boston, in Kent, Sharon, and New Milford. Then USB acquired what had been the Greenwood Bank in Bethel, and then took over seven Eagle Federal branches, including those that originally were Danbury Savings and Loan.

 Along with the mergers came other changes. Last year USB installed its first ATM machine and introduced online banking, changes designed to make banking easier and more convenient to everyone.

“Yet throughout these changes, we remained true to our mission,” Mr Frosch said. “We’re a mutual bank dedicated to serving the needs of the people, businesses, and communities of western Connecticut. Our goal is to build lasting relationships that exceed the expectations of our customers. Everything we do revolves around that premise.”

 A mutual bank is one that is owned by all of its depositors rather than by stockholders.

“Our earnings, instead of being paid out as quarterly dividends, add to our capital and allow us to provide financial support to our communities,” Mr Frosch said. “And because we are not responsible for paying dividends to stockholders, we are able to offer better rates on both deposits and loans.”

Last year USB had net income totaling $7.1 million, which boosted its capital to $91 million. The bank made $350,000 in charitable donations last year, in addition to another $68,000 through its USB Foundation, Inc., an organization formed by the bank three years ago to further support charitable activities in the region.

Thomas R. Nolan, who retired from the chairmanship of the bank’s board of directors on December 31, 2000, is the chairman of the USB Foundation. Mr Nolan served the bank for 25 years, the last 16 as chairman.

Dick Sturdevant first joined the bank as a corporator in 1980 and was named a trustee in 1982, and in recent years served as board vice chairman. A longtime Newtown resident, he was appointed by Gov John G. Rowland in 1999 to sit on the governor’s Small Business Advisory Council.

William Valenti is the branch manager of the Newtown branch.

“I think customers will be pleasantly surprised by the changes,” he said.

“Banking should not be a hassle, nor should it be expensive,” he added. “Union Savings has always been customer-oriented. I think people really like hometown banks.”