First Green Bank Expansion Strategy could see Green Bank Facilities in Orange – Seminole Area before end of the Year

MOUNT DORA, Fla. – First Green Bank hosted more than 750 visitors at its official “Grand Green Opening” of its new award winning headquarters facility in Mount Dora recently and the following week opened its first branch outside Lake County in Ormond Beach.

Soon, additional First Green Bank branches could be premiering in the Orange and Seminole County regions as well.

“The FDIC has extended their period of scrutiny from the historic three year limit to seven years, which constrains our opportunities,” said Kenneth LaRoe, chairman and chief executive officer of First Green Bank.

LaRoe, who created the bank’s “green” approach to customer service and sustainability, said there’s more work to be done yet on the bank’s Clermont and Ormond Beach branches, including upgrades to increase water conservation and provide more energy efficient appliances and lighting.

LaRoe said he is also looking at ways to incorporate solar energy components at both locations.

“We have an electric vehicle recharging station at the Clermont branch and we’re studying the feasibility of even powering that with solar panels,” LaRoe said.

“In the Orange-Seminole market, a lot will be determined by the facility or site,” LaRoe said. “If we can buy a site and build a new facility we can incorporate all the things we learned in Mount Dora.

“We may be able to buy an existing facility that we can bring up to our standards,” he said.

“If we lease a facility, we can still make improvements that meet our criteria,” LaRoe said.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), which sets standards for energy efficiency and environmental quality with its LEED (Leadership in Energy Efficient Design) program, recently introduced new LEED-EB standards for existing buildings.

“We would like to open a branch in the Orange-Seminole market area soon and we are prepared to open one before the end of this year if we can,” LaRoe said.