Building for sale — SunTrust Bank shuttered this branch office at 302 E. New York Ave. in DeLand in late January and will put the property on the market, according to a bank spokesman.
BEACON PHOTOS/JOE CREWS
Notification — A sign on the door tells SunTrust customers where they can do in-person banking, now that this branch on East New York Avenue in DeLand has closed.
Atlanta-based regional bank SunTrust has closed two branch offices in Volusia County so far this year, with four more to be shuttered in the near future.
An office at 302 E. New York Ave. was closed Jan. 24, and one on Dunlawton Avenue in Port Orange shut its doors Feb. 7, said SunTrust spokesman Hugh Suhr.
Upcoming are the shuttering of branches at 111 North Causeway in New Smyrna Beach (April 11), 2300 S. Atlantic Ave. in Daytona Beach Shores (April 25), 1510 Ridgewood Ave. in Holly Hill (May 9), and 892 Deltona Blvd. in Deltona (also May 9). After the closings, SunTrust will have 16 full-service branch offices in Volusia County, Suhr said.
SunTrust has two branches remaining in DeLand (201 E. International Speedway Blvd. and 2595 S. Woodland Blvd.), and will have just one in Deltona (601 Courtland Blvd.). There’s also an office at 2602 Enterprise Road in Orange City, as well as a dozen offices in East Volusia from Ormond Beach to Edgewater.
Suhr said the decision to close branches is not taken lightly, but only after analyzing factors such as “market growth, real estate arrangements and transaction volumes.”
“SunTrust, like all banking companies, must constantly refine its branch network to meet the changing needs and transaction patterns of clients as well as taking into account their increasing usage of newer delivery channels such as Internet Banking and Mobile Banking,” Suhr said in an email. “The opening and closing of branches is a natural part of ensuring that SunTrust is able to maximize its market opportunities and meet the needs of clients in an efficient and effective manner.”
Suhr said SunTrust will be working with the “teammates” — employees — affected by the closings.
“They may post for other positions at SunTrust,” he wrote. “Those who are unable to find suitable positions will be offered competitive severance and outplacement services.”
The properties already vacated in DeLand and Port Orange are owned by SunTrust and will be put up for sale. The other properties are leased, and SunTrust “will adhere to the terms,” Suhr said.
SunTrust is not the first financial institution to shutter offices in West Volusia in recent history. Last August, Bank of America closed its branch in DeBary, leaving that city without any physical banks. And in June 2015, Space Coast Credit Union moved a branch office from 940 Deltona Blvd. in Deltona to 2690 Enterprise Road in Orange City.
- Joe Crews, joe@beacononlinenews.com