Grand Mananers lost their only bank, so now they're working to start their own
Support is coming together to establish a credit union on the island
Mike Munro and his partner Lauren Martin own and operate the only pharmacy on the small island off the southwestern tip of New Brunswick. They are proposing a joint credit union and health centre take over the former Scotiabank location.
They presented the proposal to Grand Manan village council recently, hoping to gain support.
"It is still a bit of a long road, but we've made some key steps," Munro told Information Morning Saint John.
"It would be nice because we wouldn't be at the whim of one of the big six banks anymore," Munro said. "It would be looking out for our community as opposed to you know shareholders' bottom line."
The Grand Manan Scotiabank was the island's only bank for over a century. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
According to Finances and Consumer Services New Brunswick, a credit union is a financial co-operative. Members own and operate it, and anyone who uses the bank is a member.
Profits are shared among owners, the agency's website says, and the union is governed by a volunteer board of directors elected by the membership.
The village of about 2,400 lost its only bank last August, when the Scotiabank closed after almost 100 years of service. Now, the closest bank is about 2½ hours away from the island by ferry and car.
Munro said this has had a huge impact on the local residents and businesses.
"[It's] tough on the small community. And it can lead people to to think that maybe things could change or get worse," he said.
Online banking is still available, but that does not help the cash-only business owners, employers and seniors who don't use the technology.
Munro said island residents can fill out a form about what they're hoping to see at the new credit union. He said since the presentation to council, hundreds have filled out forms saying they want to volunteer, or they want to help invest.
"So it is going quite well considering it's only been public for about a week," he said. "Everybody who wants to be involved and everybody wants to help will increase the chance of making this reality."
ATM, loan services
Next steps include meeting the requirements of the Credit Union Act to gain government approval, which is a roadblock he hopes to clear before the end of the year.
"We're optimistic, but still cautious that there's some roadblocks ahead," he said.
If all goes to plan, the credit union would have an ATM, personal and retail banking, and in time it could expand to provide small-loan services.
Alison MacDonald, spokesperson for Atlantic Central, the trade association for credit unions in Atlantic Canada, said there are six New Brunswick credit unions in total, and none are on islands. In Atlantic Canada, there are a total of 44 credit unions, she said.
Health centre plan
The plan for the health centre could happen even earlier than the bank, Munro said. Right now, going back and forth to the mainland involves a $27 ferry, the cost of fuel, and at least two hours of travel time.
"It can be quite expensive to go do something such as, you know, physiotherapist, massage therapist, acupuncture or something that we don't really have on on the island ourselves now," he said.
The plan is to get some health professionals willing to come over to the island on a rotational basis.
"We're hoping late spring or early summer we'd be all set up in place and ready to start seeing patients," he said.
The goal is to get people to feel some hope.
"We want to try and fill that space with a bit of positivity and say look at this beautiful place," Munro said.
"These are all the things that we can start bringing back to this island, and hopefully that will help change some attitudes, and people will think seriously about looking at this as a place to live and work."
WIth files from Information Morning Moncton and Saint John
Grand Manan, NB
How does a small island survive without a bank?
With the days of in-person banking numbered on Grand Manan, small businesses are concerned about the future
But after Aug. 24, there's one key amenity Grand Manan won't be able to offer — a bank.
Scotiabank announced in January its intention to close its Grand Manan branch, the only bank on the island for over 100 years, and shut down the island's only ABM as well.
The Grand Manan Scotiabank has been the island's only bank for over a century. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
"I truly thought it was a joke at first," said Selena Leonard, while making a cash deposit at the bank. "I thought it was just one of those things that you see on Facebook that are just not true."
"It became kind of like a nightmare when we found out it was true."
Leonard and her husband live on the island, where they own two restaurants.
Selena Leonard says seniors and small business owners will be hurt most by the closure of the Grand Manan branch. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
So close, yet so far
She says a full day of travel, plus meals, to do routine banking is out of reach for most people on the island, many of whom would have to take a day off work.
In the summer Coastal Transport runs two ferries, with two hours between each trip. The rest of the year, there are four hours between trips and one ferry.
"There are quite a few people that do online banking — but a lot of our population are seniors that don't, and not all of them would have a family that could help them out," Leonard said.
It takes an hour and a half to cross from Grand Manan to Blacks Harbour on the ferry. The St. George Scotiabank, which island residents are expected to use after Aug. 24, is another 18 km from there. (Julia Wright/ CBC)
For some, that would mean having to "hire someone to take them away to the mainland. Then they have to feed them, pay for the boat fare, and pay that person to go and deposit, like, $100, or their seniors' cheque or whatever."
Tabitha Bainbridge was withdrawing cash at the Grand Manan Scotiabank with her aunt, who is in her late 80s and lives in North Head.
"This, sadly, I guess, is going to be the last time I visit the bank to withdraw some money. I'm not happy about it all," Bainbridge said.
Tabitha Bainbridge was making what she predicted would be her final trip to the Grand Manan Scotiabank to withdraw cash. Her aunt, who is in her 80s, lives in North Head and still pays all her bills in person at the bank. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
Her aunt "doesn't do smartphones. Even though we try to convince her, she doesn't have a computer, she doesn't use a bank machine, so she can't go 45 minutes to St. George every time she needs to pay her bills."
"Like many of the seniors here in person, they bring in their bill and they pay it in person. So it's ridiculous that they're talking about leaving this island without a bank," Bainbridge said.
A series of workshops, called Digital Days, have been held at the bank branch for anyone who needs help learning to use the alternatives such as online and telephone banking.
The next session will be on Aug. 11.
Theft, attracting new businesses a concern
Leonard also worries businesses with large quantities of cash on hand could be enticing to certain shady customers.
"I'm scared for our business, and other business owners. Our homes and our businesses will have, kind of, big bull's-eyes painted on them. 'Oh, come rob me because we have cash.'"
Leonard cooking for customers during the pre-ferry supper rush. She co-owns two restaurants on the island with her husband. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
"I'm not looking forward to that. Just a little bit of fear and anxiety about that," she said.
The mayor is also concerned about future prospects for the island, wondering if businesses considering setting up on Grand Manan might not want to do so without a financial institution.
Town halls, protests
Grand Mananers have tried everything to get Scotiabank to reverse the decision.
There have been heated town halls, and peaceful protest. One resident, Gregg Russell, went all the way to Toronto and staged a one-man picket outside Scotiabank headquarters on King Street West.
Grand Mananer Gregg Russell staged a one-man picket in front of the Scotiabank headquarters in Toronto this past spring. (Submitted by Gregg Russell)
John Williamson, the Conservative MP for the area, set up a meeting between Grand Manan Mayor Bonnie Morse and members of the federal finance department, including a policy adviser to Chrystia Freeland.
"They were very well briefed on our issues, but really their scope, or their ability to do anything about the bank closure, is pretty limited," Morse said.
WATCH | Why some Grand Manan residents may not be able to switch to online banking:
Mayor Morse says the village council is meeting with local businesses to determine what they need, and its Economic Development Committee is working on finding potential options. But there have been no concrete answers.
The loss of brick-and-mortar banks is a story playing out in rural communities across Canada.
In New Brunswick, Scotiabank also closed its historic branch in the village of Bath, population about 500, in July.
More branches in P.E.I. and in rural Nova Scotia will also close in the coming months.
Grand Manan's natural beauty and many shops and amenities geared toward tourists make it a popular vacation destination. (Julia Wright/ CBC)
'What in heaven's name are you thinking?'
The uncertainty is hard for people on Grand Manan who remember a time when banks and other businesses felt more connected to their community and saw customers as more than "just numbers on a page," as Leonard put it.
"This decision has been made as a result of a fulsome business review," the bank said in a statement. "We feel that this relocation will help us provide better service and greater resources to our customers in both the Grand Manan and St. George communities."
Selena Leonard isn't buying that. She has a question for the Scotiabank officials who made the decision to close the bank.
"What in heaven's name are you thinking?"
"It's just a number on a page from an office where they have no idea of the remoteness and the uniqueness of the island — how difficult, and inconvenient, it is for people here to get away," she said.
"We've been faithful to you. It's your turn."
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