ELLSWORTH – KeyBank announced it will be tearing down and rebuilding the bank’s High Street branch.

Construction is expected to start in the beginning of July and last through the end of the year.

The construction is part of a multiyear, nationwide branch “revitalization program,” according to a press release from bank officials.

Branches throughout Maine have been renovated, including a branch in Norway and the bank’s headquarters in Portland, according to Gillian Britt, a spokesperson for the bank.

According to the press release, by the end of 2009 several hundred branches across the bank’s markets will have been renovated.

The construction “goes along with everything we are trying to do with the city of Ellsworth,” said City Manager Michelle Beal. “We wanted to work with existing businesses and help them expand in Ellsworth, and as this shows, it’s moving along nicely.”

“This is a great move for us and the community,” said Jamie St. Clare, area retail leader for KeyBank. “We are committed to the Ellsworth market.”

The bank plans to bring all the employees from the High Street branch down to the Water Street branch for the duration of the construction, St. Clare said.

“After that we are going to focus our efforts on the High Street branch,” he said. “There is just more traffic flow in that area.”

St. Clare was unsure whether the Water Street branch would close after the renovations on High Street were completed.

The bank has not awarded the construction contract to a company yet but should know by the end of the week.

Construction will include large video screens behind the teller area, featuring images from the local community. Exterior improvements will include red awnings over the windows, a multilane drive-through, and an overall upgrade to landscaping, according to the press release.

“It is going to be just bigger,” said St. Clare.

KeyBank account holders are encouraged to use online banking, telephone banking and the Water Street branch to do their banking in the meantime.

mdabrieo@bangordailynews.net

664-0524