The new Iowa State Bank occupies the northeast corner of the main intersection in downtown Paullina, Iowa.
TIM GALLAGHER
The old Iowa State Bank building on the northwest corner of the main intersection in downtown Paullina, Iowa, has been given to the City of Paullina. A committee will forward a recommendation for its use to the city council and economic development boards serving the O'Brien County community.
PAULLINA, Iowa | Iowa State Bank began a construction project across North Main Street in May 2016.
Nine months later, the bank moved in to its new home.
"We are very happy with having everything on one level," said Paul Struve, location manager for Iowa State Bank, which has had a presence in the center of this community since 2004. "It's more efficient for our employees and it's better for our customers. We're very happy with how it turned out."
Poppema-Sikma Construction of Sheldon, Iowa, served as general contractor, building on a design put into place by project manager Matt Barstad of Cannon Moss Brygger Architects, of Sioux City.
The bank had occupied its spot on the northwest corner of a main downtown intersection for years. Actually, that spot had been a bank since the 1890s, Struve said.
What the location becomes now is up to the city, its leaders and its residents. Iowa State Bank gave that two-story site to the City of Paullina. A committee has met recently to examine ideas for possible future use of the site. A wellness center has been mentioned, as has office space. Some wonder if the top level could be renovated for use as downtown apartment dwellings.
The committee will forward recommendations to the Paullina City Council and to the Paullina Economic Development group.
While that scenario plays out, the six employees and the customers of Iowa State Bank continue to work and thrive in their new site, quite a welcome change for an empty lot that most recently marked that location.
The old Iowa State Bank building on the northwest corner of the main intersection in downtown Paullina, Iowa, has been given to the City of Paullina. A committee will forward a recommendation for its use to the city council and economic development boards serving the O'Brien County community.
