An Alliance Bank branch will be opening on Marshall Street next September as part of the bank’s design to expand within Onondaga County, a bank official said.

The property that is now a Hershey’s Ice Cream shop on the corner of South Crouse Avenue and Marshall Street has been leased by Alliance Bank and will be renovated into a small branch by September, said Joseph Russo, vice president of investor relations.

‘We’ll be the highest (bank) on the Hill,’ Russo said. ‘Pedestrian traffic will be very attractive.’

The new branch will be opening as part the bank’s plan to expand its presence in Onondaga County and in response to requests to move onto the Hill from customers in the medical community, Russo said. In addition to a lobby and tellers, there will be one exterior and one interior ATM.

While the branch will most likely be used by those customers in the medical community, students at Syracuse University and State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry may not be interested in opening a local bank account.

‘I don’t know if students would switch their bank accounts; (being at school) is a temporary thing,’ said Shannon Gabriel, a sophomore biology major. ‘We go home every couple months anyways.’

Gabriel, who lives in New Hampshire, said she avoids the fees charged by Bank of America for withdrawing from local ATMs by using her debit card as often as possible.

Katie Riecke, a sophomore advertising major, said she had a checking account at the HSBC on East Adams Street for the first half of her freshman year, but closed it when they told her she would receive fees for not maintaining a minimum balance.

As for student employment, the manager of the Hershey’s Ice Cream shop would not say how many SU and SUNY-ESF students he employs, but only that it ‘depends on the time of year.’ He denied commenting on why he did not re-sign the lease on the property.

In staffing the Alliance Bank branch, existing employees will be given the first opportunity, Russo said. But it should also be reflective of the university neighborhood.

If part-time employees are to be hired, applicants should be trustworthy and reliable – the same type of people working at any retail establishment, Russo said.

Alliance Bank has its headquarters in Syracuse. The Marshall Street branch will be the 11th branch in Onondaga County and the 22nd branch overall, Russo said.

Published on April 1, 2006 at 12:00 pm