With a footprint less than the width of two parked cars my 5-year-old daughter once again summed it up best dubbing the new-and-definitely-not-improved Bank of America “A Kira sized building”.
Maybe for a Grand Opening they could hire the remaining ‘Wizard of Oz’ munchkins and—if they can still skip around—change their tag line to “follow the red brick road.” Or if Linda Carter is still available she could squeeze into her ‘Wonder Woman’ costume and be the official sliding door greeter (a la Wal Mart).
But yeah, I have to agree with Mary and her daughter; it also looks like a bad crosspollination between Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut; either of which, at least, would have live human beings inside.
And I guess it’s no coincidence that Bank Of America (#1 nationwide for ATM locations) just raised ATM fees to $3. Considering this Amherst location, at the gateway to Umass, attracts lots of students and the bank has almost zero overhead, this facility will be highly profitable—for Bank Of America. Not, unfortunately, for our community.
http://onlyintherepublicofamherst.blogspot.com/2007/07/to-hell-with-bankofamerica.html
It defintely looks like a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant for munchkins.
ReplyDeleteBut in the world of Internet Banking and ATM's everywhere, I bet bank branches are getting downsized all over the country. These days, I visit a human at my bank (Florence Savings) maybe four times a year.
Before FDIC insurance, banks used to compete for customers' trust by looking big, wealthy, and respectable. Now that none of us can remember anybody losing money kept in a bank, I guess they can look cheap and cheesy.
Yeah, but there is still--in the business world--something known as image or PR (public relations not the island).
ReplyDeletePerhaps if Amherst had said "sure go ahead with your cheesy munchkin building that pays way less taxes then it used to," but we're going to divest all town funds in anything remotely related to your bank.
(Yikes, I'm getting way too much like Bill O'Reilly)
If you really want to 'get your O'Reilly' on, then you'll also carp about BoA's credit card for
ReplyDeletethe so-called undocumented workers.
I forgot about that. These folks are an embarrassment to capitalism.
ReplyDeleteI wish that they'd planted some greenery. I have a question of business owners: In this case, I was told they planted the bare minimum required. Why don't all business work to beautify rather than pave. I realize I'm generalizing, and I apologize, but it seems parking and paving are the highest priority. Isn't there a compromise that's a bit more balanced toward plants?
ReplyDeleteExamples other than this one:
VFW on Main: A sea of pavement
Grange hall downtown: From lawn to parking
Classic Chevrolet: almost zero green, and the actually cut down the few remaining trees
It seems that business - by itself - doesn't take the common good into account by default? I think that's why judicious regulation makes sense.
Disclaimer: This from a small (and new) self-employed person working out of my home. I'd love to hear thoughts on this from larger business owners...