First Community Bank recently announced the purchase of property at 766 Harkrider Street in Conway, Arkansas. The property, located in the downtown district at the corner of Harkrider and Polk streets, is a highly visible corridor that will become a focal point once a new structure graces this corner. The next phase, pending regulatory approval, includes placing a temporary building on the property site that will offer drive thru banking lanes and ATM services. As a stride toward the city’s beautification efforts, future construction plans include a state-of-the-art permanent structure that will serve as Conway’s principal location.
“Our search for the perfect piece of property was a challenge to say the least, as our first couple of purchase attempts didn’t work out,” said Grant Gordy, community president for Conway. “We were determined to stay in the downtown district to help preserve this beautiful historical area. With each setback, a new opportunity presented itself, and we ended up finding, what we believe to be, the perfect location in the heart of our community.”
“After a year of steady growth in the Conway market, we want to further establish our roots in an area that has proved ready to embrace our spirit of community banking,” said Dale Cole, chairman and CEO of First Community Bank. “We are thrilled to make a significant investment in Conway and look forward to increasing our presence in this dynamic community.”
Gordy further stated, “Ultimately, this expansion will bring together two very important elements: a community bank led by seasoned bankers committed to true relationship banking and the thriving community of Conway. First Community Bank makes it a priority to meet customers where they are and offer the most efficient solutions to meet their financial goals. We look forward to seeing our Conway Area customers continue to benefit from our approach to community banking. After all, community is our middle name!”
First Community Bank currently operates at 1089 Front Street. The bank is a one-stop-financial-center offering traditional banking services as well as insurance, home mortgage, brokerage and trust services. The lobby hours for the Front Street location are Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. First Community Bank also has locations in Baxter, Boone, Craighead, Independence, Jackson, Lonoke, Sharp, Poinsett, Pulaski and White counties, as well as McDonald and Newton counties in Southwest Missouri.
First Community Bank also offers an impressive array of online and mobile banking services. Some of these include mobile banking and deposits, online bill pay, online/mobile account opening and custom eAlerts.
“At First Community Bank, we realize that everyone has unique banking needs and schedules,” said Amber Bass, senior vice president business and electronic solutions. “We offer a combination of electronic banking solutions to make banking easy, convenient and instantly at our customers’ fingertips.”
Staffing includes Grant Gordy as community president, Lori Melton as senior vice president business development officer, Cameron Reesor as secondary mortgage loan originator, Jerry Harrison as senior vice president commercial lending, Jackie Bennett as vice president commercial lending, Tara Mallett as assistant vice president branch operations, Teresa Hendrix as loan support assistant, Eduard Millan as teller/new accounts, Gabriela Vargas as customer care representative, Natalia Zwirek as personal banker, and Jeremy Hawkins and Brittany Lawson as representatives of the bank’s insurance agency, Community Insurance Professionals.
The Conway announcement video can be viewed at First Community Bank’s Facebook page. For more information about First Community Bank, call 870-612-3400 or visit www.firstcommunity.net.
First Community Bank, which is locally owned and managed, opened August 4, 1997, in Batesville, Arkansas, and currently operates 27 full-service branches in Arkansas and Missouri. First Community employs more than 460 professional bankers and reports assets of $1.8 billion as of December 31, 2020.
This article originally appeared in the March 2021 issue of the North Metro Business Journal.
