Bank Independent breaks ground on new operations center in the Shoals

North Alabama-based Bank Independent broke ground last week on a new 95,000-square-foot operations center in Muscle Shoals. The $60 million facility will be located off Reservation Road on a 50-acre campus.

Here’s what we know:

The new Bank Independent operations center

Bank officials broke ground Wednesday on the new operations center, which will place all of the Sheffield-based bank’s operation under one roof. Currently, the bank operates out of five different offices across the area.

Here are some more details:

• The 95,000 sq. ft complex is scheduled to be completed in the Spring of 2025.
• The building structure will include a combination of steel and concrete and the building outside will be brick, glass, and metal panels with aluminum frames.
• The interiors will use LED lighting systems suspended from a structure above with minimal suspended ceilings, which results in tall interior spaces.
• Corporate office space will be subdivided using open office systems furniture and demountable glass walls; all providing maximum flexibility for future changes.
• Calvin Durham with Lambert Ezell Durham Architecture, LLC of Florence is the lead architect in association with KPS Group, Inc. Robins & Morton is the General Contractor for the project.

“Our new facility will provide high quality custom designed office space to serve the needs of our team members, customers, and communities. It will include training rooms, a medical response area, a wellness room, a fitness center, and a conferencing center served by catering, team member café and private dining and kitchen. The new facility will also include a Bank Independent Museum that will honor the legacy of the thousands of team members who have served the bank over the past 75 years with over 25 million hours of service. We look forward to this facility enhancing our reputation as the employer of choice for the next 75 years.”

Rick Wardlaw, Bank Independent CEO

Bank Independent’s history in North Alabama

Bank Independent was established in 1947, and currently operates 29 traditional sales offices across North Alabama, an on-campus Deshler Tiger Branch and a digital sales office.

Bank officials have expressed the bank’s devotion to the rich history of North Alabama.

“It’s especially noteworthy that we are building on the ground of the original TVA where Presidents Roosevelt and Kennedy came to recognize our community’s monumental contribution to electrifying the entire Tennessee Valley.”

Macke Mauldin, president, Bank Independent

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