Why Are There So Many Banks In Morristown?
"You Ask ... Patch Answers" tackles the burning questions around town.
"Why are there so many banks in Morristown? We must own some sort of record for financial institutions per square mile or something."
-Alison
This is the question this week in "You Ask ... Patch Answers," where Morristown Patch tackles some of the questions readers have been curious about, but have not been able to locate an answer. We're here to help.
Like death and taxes are two unavoidable realities of life, two unavoidable businesses in Morristown are restaurants and banks. For some, like Alison, it seems there is a rather unusually large number of banks here.
Why? Is it a conscious decision by the town to get more and more banks here? Is there something about Morristown that has attracted them here?
Well, yes, actually, both reasons are kind of true. According to France Delle Donne, director of development for Morristown Partnership, banks and financial services firms expanded and merged nationwide from 2005 through 2007 and securing a presence in multiple locations was the objective. "More locations meant more deposits," she said.
"As a commercial property owner why would you refuse a tenant that will pay you upward of $55 to $65 a square foot, more than double the market rate in Morristown at that time," Delle Donne said.
Town Zoning Officer John Fugger said banks, as financial institutions, are permitted in multiple areas of town, including the downtown area and office districts. "When they see an available building, they're going to try and open up a bank in town," he said.
Morristown has had a lot of banks open up in town in recent years. Fugger estimated up to 10 new banks have moved into town in the last 15 years, which does not include new banks replacing old ones. In total, in Morristown's three-square-miles, there are "well over 25 banks in town," he said.
"The issue is, with a normal retail store, when they try and lease a space in some of these popular districts, where there is pedestrian traffic and visual traffic, these landlords keep bumping up rent ... a person wants to open a boutique or small restaurant, can't afford rent they are paying," Fugger said. "The banks, who have all the money to spend, will pick that up if they want to."
The simple answer to the question is, according to Fugger, "Banks are banks. They want to do business."
In addition, "we [Morristown] want to keep our vacant spaces un-vacant," he added.
Thank you, Alison, for your question.
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Alison Kiczek
12:06 pm on Thursday, October 14, 2010
Thanks for answering! It's amazing that so many banks are paying top dollar for retail space, when online banking is so prevalent these days. I could probably count on one hand the number of times I have stepped into a bank (past the ATM) in the past few years. Oh well, maybe one day we'll get some actual stores back in Morristown!
Paul Kiczek
2:06 pm on Thursday, October 14, 2010
I don' think "Banks are banks" and "we want to keep our vacant paces un-vacant" are satisfactory answers to this not-to-recent problem. Or, maybe it could be re-translated as "we don't care what business opens as long as they pay rent" and "jeez, have you seen all the vacant stores in this town? Who needs another one".
This subject should be a business development concern. For Morristown, the Morristown Partnership should provide a better answer. Sure, this space is better collecting rent. But, what are the alternative cost of not having other desirable businesses, like a variety of retail store which actually "draw business" into town. You just cant convince me that these banks cause retail traffic that benefit the town in any way.
The obvious argument is that the banks are the only retailers that can afford it (or maybe dumb enough to think they are making a killing in a town of 25 competitors.). Look at today's financial mess and think about what the next few years holds in store for many of these banks and brokerage houses. We already regret that we cant get decent retailers in town (maybe because there's too many undesireable businesses already here). If the banks start tightenting their budgets and more service goes online, which is already happening, we'll have a lot more empty space and a lot fewer banks as a result.