A big four bank is set to relocate its only remaining branch in a busy town, meaning customers will need to go to the new location to continue face-to-face banking.
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) is closing its existing Noosa Heads branch to open a new $1.5 million branch in the region’s burgeoning business centre.
CBA has confirmed to Sunshine Coast News that it will move to Noosa Civic in the middle of the year.
It comes after the bank submitted a development application to Noosa Council in March seeking approval to reconfigure the fit-out of its proposed tenancy.
The existing CBA is currently located at Noosa Junction and is its only remaining branch in the Noosa region after the bank closed its Tewantin branch in 2022.
The CBA Cooroy branch was also closed permanently in 2019 due to increases in online banking almost halving the number of over-the-counter transactions.
Residents began airing their concerns that the bank was leaving town all together after the current Noosa Junction premises, at 1A/4-6 Sunshine Beach Road, was listed for lease with Forde Property.
However, CBA Noosa branch manager Rheian Beresford has confirmed the bank will not be closing for good, instead moving to a larger location.
“We are investing more than $1.5 million to provide our Noosa customers with a new and innovative space to bank,” Mr Beresford said.
“This will see our branch in Noosa Junction relocate and expand to the Noosa Civic Shopping Centre in July.
“The new branch will have twice as many service points and showcase the latest in banking technology, including coin-counting devices and 24/7 access to ATMs with instant deposit capability.
“Our team are proud to serve the Noosa community every day and we are excited to continue investing in the local area.”
According to architectural plans submitted to Noosa Council, the new branch will be located at the western end of the centre’s commercial and business precinct, next to Gentle Dental.
Works would include removal and installation of partition walls and fittings, replacement of window glazing with wall elements, installation of ATMs and external building works.
The application for the minor change to approval is still undergoing assessment through Noosa Council.
Noosa Civic has become a hub for banks and is currently home to ANZ, Bank of Queensland, National Australia Bank, Heritage Bank and Suncorp.
The Commonwealth Bank was unable to confirm if an ATM will remain in the Noosa Junction branch vicinity at this stage.
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