To protest, Valley Green Bank's displacement of a retail food convenience store location, call President Jay Goldstein at 215-242-3550 and tell him what you think.
Rudnick mouths off:
"We have so many banks in Chestnut Hill it's like pollution, it's unhealthy for the neighborhood and...
Practically coincident with the news that WAWA would close its popular convenience store on Highland Avenue in Chestnut Hill came the news that the startup bank Valley Green Bank in Mount Airy would occupy the WAWA site. The WAWA serviced the whole community with early and late hours including workmen stopping by Kilian's hardware, police and fire officers on their way to work, kids stopping in for a snack, parents like us making a late evening trip for milk for the next morning's coffee and cereal. A convenient parking lot is next door.
The official WAWA line is that they lacked expansion space. See the article in the Local. Yeah, so what! Do you mean to tell me they stopped liking making money? The company, originally founded in 1803 as the Millville [Textile] Manufacturing company later opened a milk plant in Wawa, PA and the rest is history. To all appearances, the highly trafficked Chestnut Hill WAWA was minting money! So why close?
Now, with more than 8 or 9 other banks within a few blocks of each other it's clear that Valley Green wanted to be with the big boys and that's just fine. In fact I opened up an IRA account there a few months ago to support their upstart business.
But hey, Valley Green, just because the WAWA moves out doesn't mean you have to move in! This location is eminently suited for a food convenience store. And if WAWA doesn't want to do business there, surely 711 or perhaps even an individual entrepreneur could do a fine business there.
Chestnut HIll is being suffocated with banks. Too many banks- it's bank pollution! Take your business where it's needed the most, Valley Green, in Germantown for instance and find yourself a location that doesn't displace a retail operation. After all who in the world wants to walk up and down the avenue to windowshop in banks. BORING.
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