IGNACE — The town's interim mayor isn't ready to give up the fight to keep Ignace's last remaining bank open, despite plans for the branch to close next month.
“I will not take no for an answer and that you haven't heard the last from our council,” interim Mayor Kim Baigrie told Frugina Ball, the region head at Alterna Saving in Toronto.
Baigrie has had four meetings with the credit union since they announced that they will be closing their Ignace branch in September.
“I'm very disappointed in them because they never gave us any notice. They just called probably two weeks before people thought their letters and said this is what's happening,” Baigrie said in an interview with NWOnewswatch earlier this week.
Baigrie said that Alterna Saving has claimed the bank is closing due to staffing issues, but the interim mayor has her doubts.
“[Ball] says that it's a staff issue but I don't really think it is because they have staff. I know there's a couple on maternity leave, but there's also been one that said that they will stay there until the girls get back from the maternity leave,” said Baigrie.
The remaining employees were offered positions in Alterna's Thunder Bay and Dryden branches, according to Baigrie.
With the Alterna Credit Union being the only bank in the township, the business community is going to feel the brunt of the closure. After the bank is closed, businesses will have to drive to Dryden or Thunder Bay to make their cash deposits. This will mean instead of making daily deposits, they will need to keep their deposits on hand until they make the trip.
“Businesses aren't going to be able to go and buy their coin. Businesses may have big cash deposits. Is that safe on the highway going to Dryden an hour away? We don't have a safe highway to begin with and now we're making community members drive out of town,” Baigrie said.
The business community isn't thrilled.
"This is going to be a nightmare,” said Braggs Retail Clothing owner Bonnie Labuik.
Labuik is concerned about having to keep large deposits of money in her shop or even her home. Labuik said that she had to install security cameras because of the number of incidents where she would arrive at work to see vandals had damaged her shop windows.
Baigrie said that she is willing to go beyond Alterna Saving's regional representatives, instead planning to plead their case with the executive director.
The town's council want Alterna Saving to give the town one more year before making their final decision to close the bank.
Ignace is expecting to see potential growth if the Nuclear Waste Management Organization decides to select the area for Canada’s deep geological repository. Ignace is one of two remaining potential sites, with selection expected to be announced in the fall of 2024.
Nuclear Waste Management Organization officials have said that Ignace would likely grow by about 1,000 people if selected, with 200 jobs available during the pre-construction phases between 2024 and 2032, with 310 jobs during construction between 2033 and 2042, along with 430 additional construction jobs for local community services and infrastructure development, and 700 jobs during the operations phase between 2043 and 2088.
These jobs will open new development of houses and businesses as more people see Ignace begin to boom with new economic opportunities.
“There could be an influx of people moving to this community. There could be an influx of houses being built. There could be an influx of needing a mortgage, and that's what we can't understand. Like give us a year. Let the community prove to you that we can keep this bank open,” Baigrie said.
