Peach Buzz November 2020

Expanding to Our Newest Hometown – Braselton

Loan office to open in early 2021

We’re growing, and next on our map of hometown locations is the Braselton market.

Peach State Bank & Trust will be opening a new office along the Hwy. 211 corridor that will handle commercial loans, mortgages and home equity lines for South Hall businesses and residents. This expanded footprint will strengthen our position as the “one and only” locally owned community bank for all of Hall County.

Ron Quinn, our bank president and CEO, said that when the new office opens, “we’ll hit the ground running with a powerhouse team that is already so well-respected and connected to Braselton and the surrounding area.”

• Executive Vice President Terry Evans, a veteran lender who has been CEO of two different banks, has strong ties to Braselton and Gwinnett County. A former Rotary Club president in Gwinnett County, he also has served on the board for the Braselton Community Improvement District and the Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s Braselton advisory group.
• Senior Vice President David Dyer, who grew up in small-town Blairsville, has nearly three decades of business and commercial lending experience in Braselton and next-door Winder, where he still resides with his family.
• Mortgage banker Rhonda Dellinger comes to Peach State from Homestar Financial. A resident of South Hall, Rhonda’s banking career dates back to the former 1st National Bank of Gainesville. Most recently, she has specialized in home loans, bringing much needed experience and accessibility to the Braselton area’s fast-growing housing market.

It’s important to point out that our Peach State Braselton office is not a branch bank. We will primarily be serving loan customers there. However, an on-site ITM (Interactive Teller Machine) outside our office will allow our regular checking customers to communicate directly via a live video screen with our call center in Gainesville. So, you’ll have the convenience of conducting everyday bank business such as making deposits, withdrawals or cashing checks – all from just outside the door of our Braselton location.

We’ll be opening soon – so stay tuned!

While we’re growing all the way to South Hall with a Braselton loan office, we’re also growing at home with a new downtown Gainesville base for our mortgage division – just a few convenient steps from our main office.

If you’ve visited our bank lately, you likely noticed packed offices that are beginning to even strain our ability to socially distance our staff. With over 60 professionals now, we’ve simply outgrown our space. In fact, many of our employees park off site to allow more room for customers.

After reviewing a number of relocation options, our Board of Directors led by businessman Stewart Teaver made a recent decision: We’re here to stay in downtown Gainesville. So, we have been purchasing land all around our Washington Street location to allow for more elbow room.

The first phase in our downtown expansion will be a new Home Mortgage Office at the former site of North Georgia Auto Glass, a historical building that used to be a downtown Sinclair gas station. The site is wedged in between our bank headquarters and the Arts Council’s beautiful Smithgall Arts Center.

Working with the City of Gainesville and its tax allocation district committee, we are improving the old site with a major renovation that will maintain its architectural character. The Peach State “Home” mortgage office is slated to open later this month.

As part of our future phases of downtown expansion, we have purchased the old Henry O’s Bar and Grill (more recently known as Mule Camp Tavern) – next door to our future mortgage office on Spring Street. This site is under consideration for our future operations center.

Looking even farther ahead, we also have secured the parking lot next to the old Gym of 36 on Maple Street. Our plans there are still under review and discussion.

“Our actions should speak loudly,” says Stewart Teaver, our board chairman. “We believe in Gainesville and the downtown business district, especially with all the exciting upcoming development of commercial and residential projects.

“It’s an exciting time for downtown Gainesville as we look to solidify Peach State’s visibility and presence as the region’s primary community bank.”

A Taste of Gainesville: Senor Fiesta

It’s a pretty sure bet that at least three out of five people in the north Georgia area have dined at Senor Fiesta in either Gainesville or Dawsonville. The super-popular Fresh-Mex Grill, a local favorite with a steady following, is known for a diverse lunch and dinner menu, good service and a fun, casual atmosphere.

Both Senor Fiesta locations are owned by Uriel Arellano, a Peach State Bank business and personal banking customer. “Everyone at Peach State is so helpful. They worked with me on all the Payroll Protection Program paperwork at the start of the coronavirus pandemic so I could keep my employees on staff,” says Uriel. “That was invaluable. And they have partnered with me on a loan for a new development next door to the Gainesville location. Honestly, I wouldn’t bank with anyone else.”

Bring your friends, family and appetite to Senor Fiesta for a great meal. You’re sure to see us there.

Employee Spotlight

Rhonda Wright

Rhonda is a Customer Service Representative. She is responsible for opening business and personal accounts, certificates of deposit, Individual Retirement Accounts, and Health Savings accounts. She helps our customers with any questions or changes to their banking needs. If you have visited our lobby, you probably already know Rhonda. Here is a chance to learn a little more about her.

Question: How long have you worked at Peach State?
Answer: I have worked at Peach State 13 years.

Question: What led you to a career in banking?
Answer: Way back in 1977, a friend of mine asked me to come and work at First National Bank and I have loved banking since then.

Question: What is your favorite restaurant and what is your favorite dish there?
Answer: My favorite restaurant is the Sundae Café at Tybee Island. I love the ribeye steak and sweet potatoes. Yum!

Question: Tell us about your family?
Answer: Ken and I have three wonderful children, Josh, Jeannie, and Lindsey (Jeannie is my daughter-in-law but we claim her as our own) and our granddaughter Collins, who just turned one. She is a princess!

Question: What is your favorite thing about working at Peach State?
Answer: I don’t have a favorite thing about working at Peach State Bank. There are so many things I love! I love the feeling of a family and friend workplace. I love my customers who are also my friends. I love that the bank allows us to give full attention to our customers so that we can continue to make Peach State Bank a bank where you can walk in and have a pleasant banking experience.

Question: Is there something you have not done but would love to do sometime?
Answer: I would love to skydive with my daughter, Lindsey, and go to a Dude Ranch with my friend and fellow banker Susan Williams.

Question: What is your favorite movie?
Answer: My favorite movie is “Remember the Titans.” When it first came out, I took my son, Josh, to see it because he was thinking about trying out for football. I like football but I love baseball, so I did not want him to possibly hurt his pitching arm by playing football. We are at the movies and when the players are hitting in practice, I leaned over and whispered, “look at how hard they hit Josh”. He whispered “yeah, Mom, ain’t that neat.”

Question: Have you ever met anyone famous?
Answer: I was thrilled to meet Shirley Jones. I was a big fan of the Partridge Family and her movie role in the musical “Oklahoma” – so to meet her and sit with her for a few hours conversing was a big thing for me.

DEPARTMENT SPOTLIGHT

Treasury Management Services

Leading-edge, local-edge financial tools for business

Peach State Bank’s Treasury Management Services offers a full menu of convenient financial tools for your business. Our technology is leading edge and backed by “can-do” service with a local edge.

• Corporate Cash Management provides access to a company’s banking information and the ability to assign different levels of access to employees.
• Business Bill Pay allows small businesses to efficiently manage payments and the flexibility to delegate payment tasks as needed.

• Mobile Banking allows business transactions through an app on an iPhone or Android device.
• Remote Deposit Capture lets companies scan and deposit checks securely from a computer or check scanner.
• Positive Pay allows customers to detect and stop suspicious checks.

For more information on all Treasury Management services for business, visit Treasury Management Services.

LOCAL WINDOW ON THE ECONOMY

Gainesville-Hall Economy Bouncing Back from Pandemic

PPP Loans helped many local businesses

This past spring, Peach State Bank & Trust received a record amount of loan applications under the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Despite these high numbers and predictions of a national recession, we have witnessed Gainesville-Hall County bouncing back faster than the rest of the state.

“We’ve certainly seen a lot of businesses, particularly retail and even some small medical practices, that have struggled,” says Ron Quinn, president and CEO of Peach State Bank. “However, it’s encouraging to see the innovation of so many small businesses such as our local restaurants who have learned to adapt and work around so many difficult challenges.”

The Payroll Protection Program this year was a lifeline for many of our local businesses by covering approximately two months of operational costs. The federal program, which Peach State helped to administer in Hall County, is overseen by the Small Business Administration and Treasury Department.

For its part, Peach State received over 300 PPP applications and approved over $34 million in loans, preserving more than 4,200 local jobs.

As the only locally owned and operated community bank in Gainesville-Hall County, Peach State is a local bellwether for the region’s economy. Consequently, it has a vested interest in the success or failure of every business in this community – truly, we are “Invested at Home.”

In addition to his community involvement here in Gainesville-Hall County, Ron Quinn served as chairman of the Community Bankers Association (CBA) of Georgia and continues to serve on the board, which provides him with another unique perspective of every corner of the state’s economy.

“That’s why I am so confident in the strength of Gainesville’s business community and our resilience, certainly much better than most other areas of Georgia,” he says.

Since the beginning days of the pandemic, Hall County unemployment numbers already have improved from an alarming 10.3 percent in April to 4 percent more recently. Statewide, the Georgia Department of Labor has distributed $15 billion in unemployment benefits since March.

Meanwhile, Gainesville-Hall County remains the state’s fastest growing metro area as well as being among the top 50 metros in the nation, according to the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth.

Ron has led Peach State Bank & Trust since its founding in 2005. Last year, the bank surpassed the $250 million mark in total assets and is poised to expand even more than originally forecasted – partly due to the ongoing federal loan rescue program – as long as our customers are able to hang on through the pandemic. “I’m confident they will, and we certainly will do all we can as a bank to help.”

Peach State Ranks No. 1 in State for Asset Quality

Peach State Bank’s loan portfolio ranks top among the best banks in Georgia in analysis released by Performance Trust, a financial advisory and investment banking services company, based in Chicago, Illinois.

We ranked No. 1 among 153 Georgia banks in asset quality, which reflects the safety of existing and potential credit risk associated with a bank’s loan and investment portfolios, real estate, and other assets. The ranking was based on a 12-month period ending June 30th of this year. At the time of the report, the bank’s assets totaled nearly $400 million with approximately $240 million in gross loans.

“This is an excellent report for our bank,” said Ron Quinn, president and CEO of Peach State Bank & Trust. “It’s certainly a tribute to our loan and credit officers and staff, but as importantly, it also demonstrates the strength of our local economy.”

In other statewide rankings, we were 35th in overall performance, 42nd in total assets and 50th in return on equity.

Cookbook Corner

Harvest Chili

A lower carb option

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1 16-ounce can pumpkin
1 packet Tex-Mex McCormick Chili seasoning
½ white onion chopped
1 small bell pepper chopped
1 cup beef broth
14-ounce can petite diced tomatoes
2-3 cloves minced garlic
¼ - ½ cup jalapeno juice (white vinegar works just as well)

Cooking Directions:
Cook and drain ground beef. Combine all ingredients and simmer 1 hour. Serve with all the goodies: Sour cream, cheese, more jalapenos!

Tips to Protect Yourself from Online Hackers

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• Don’t click links or open attachments from people or companies you do not know. Don’t respond to emails requesting personal information without knowing it is legitimate. Always verify.
• Make sure your devices (computer, smart phone and tablets) are up to date with all the security patches.