Unity Bank opens new Bergen County branch

On the heels of debuting a new location in Ocean County to close out 2022, Unity Bank said Feb. 6 it opened its latest branch in Bergen County.

The 1,890-square-foot facility at 899 Palisades Ave. in Fort Lee is the Clinton-based organization’s 20th branch location.

According to Unity Bank, the new store enhances its retail presence in the county, which already boasts one branch in Emerson.

“We are committed to Bergen County and Fort Lee is a natural fit to our footprint,” Unity Bank President and CEO James Hughes said in a statement. “Banking services at the branch level are increasingly important to our customers, particularly small business owners who still, even in the age of electronic banking, rely on branches.

“Community banks are engines for economic growth and we are focused on bringing that drive to Bergen County,” he added.

The facility, which was previously occupied by ConnectOne Bank, offers dedicated parking in addition to drive-up banking and ATM services.

Unity Bank Senior Vice President/Chief Depository Officer Ryan Peene leads the development of the new Fort Lee branch and all of the company’s retail banking operations. He is well known in the area, according to Unity, thanks to leadership roles on the City of Hoboken Planning Board and Greater Bergen Community Action. The team also includes: Franca Fabrizio, area manager; Sunita Pereira, operations manager; Vince Forma, commercial lender; Kathleen Hay, SBA lender; and Nicholas Aversa and Pasquale Grande, mortgage lenders.

In December, Unity made its retail entrance to the Ocean County market. There, the Lakewood branch location is based within a commercial and residential lending office that opened earlier in 2022. The primary and wholly owned subsidiary of Unity Bancorp. Inc. now operates in Bergen, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Ocean, Somerset, Union and Warren counties in New Jersey and in Northampton County, Pa.

As of Sept. 30, 2022, the most-recent information available, Unity held approximately $2.4 billion in assets and $1.8 billion in deposits.

“Unity is committed to supporting small businesses and families,” said Hughes. “The new branches are bringing our full suite of products and services to the local marketplace. We are helping launch small businesses, grow existing companies and enable families to purchase a house, or put an addition on their existing home.”