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Bank Of America Drive-Through, 2095 Beltline Boulevard: Late February 2015   4 comments

Posted at 2:32 am in closing

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I noticed the other week something going on at the Richland Mall Bank Of America, with a dumpster pulled up to the drive-through. This week it is apparent that the drive-through has been closed. I guess it was a bit awkward having an unconnected outbuilding for the tellers, and perhaps even a security issue. At any rate, I believe the Trenholm Plaza branch is now the next closest drive-through.

4 Responses to 'Bank Of America Drive-Through, 2095 Beltline Boulevard: Late February 2015'

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  1. Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2015 19:09:55 +0000
    Author: Sidney

    Comment: You know the Wells Fargo on the corner of Beltline and Forest have an unconnected building for the drive thru as well.

    Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2015 20:59:16 +0000
    Author: Andrew

    Comment: I don't have any accounts with either Wells Fargo or Bank of America so I haven't paid attention to the details that Sidney speaks to but I find myself wondering the following: if a major redevelopment project for Richland Mall finally works out, will this parcel of land be included in the redevelopment thereof??

    I wish I knew the best way to bring new life into Richland Mall but I sadly lack such a vision...

    Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2015 22:10:46 +0000
    Author: Sidney

    Comment: I had put my vision for Richland Mall on here a few months ago. Nobody commented on it. Here it is again.

    Turn it into a huge entertainment complex. Restaurants, bowling alley, clubs, bars, comedy club, etc. The theater is already there. There's plenty of parking.

    Have the restaurants and bowling alley on the bottom level and the clubs and bars on the top level. Since it's all indoors, you could walk around with your drinks. There could also be little drink kiosks in the middle.

    That side of town could use a Red Lobster, Olive Garden, O'Charley's, Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs, bring back TGI Friday's, Chilli's, IHOP, Hooters, Outback, Red Robin, Five Guys, Wild Wing Cafe.

    It would have to have top notch security to keep the riff raff from loitering. NO one under 21 is allowed upstairs in the bars and clubs after 10:00pm.

    The only problem I see with that would be it being a fire hazard with all of those restaurants inside the mall. But other than that, it has the space and the parking and like I said, that side of town needs more restaurants.

    Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2015 22:14:26 +0000
    Author: Sidney

    Comment: And with that side of town having more money makers, high end restaurants would probably do good there too.

    Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2015 22:54:56 +0000
    Author: Andrew

    Comment: Here are some thoughts that run through my head about Sidney's list:

    Wild Wing Cafe is already established in the Vista.

    Five Guys is already up the street at Forest Drive and Trenholm Road.

    I would like to see Olive Garden & Red Lobster open up in the Rosewood or Forest Acres area somewhere...

    I'd welcome TGI Friday's reopening in the Columbia area but not sure where the best spot for them would be.

    Chili's I could see working as they have locations on Two Notch Road, Harbison Court and at 378 & I-20 in Lexington.

    O'Charley's is another one I'd be receptive towards as their only two locations are in Lexington and at Sparkleberry Square.

    Cheesecake Factory & PF Changs currently lack a presence in the Columbia market.

    Many of the restaurants Sidney lists seem to gravitate towards freestanding buildings making them unlikely to be interested in a mall-type atmosphere but I could see Outback not as likely stemming from the way they are with their Harbison Court location though they do have a freestanding building on Two Notch that I haven't been in.

    A bowling alley require a significant amount of overhaul but it could be a possibility as the closest ones are Park Lanes in Cayce, Royal Z in Northeast Richland and Anchor Lanes in Irmo.

    I'm far from the most knowledgeable person about bars as I'm a noise sensitive person and the boisterousness of bars turns me off to them so the biggest issue I'd see is working it so that the noise doesn't disrupt the other sections of the mall.

    The other challenge I think such an idea faces is how to place signage on the roadway that is aesthetically pleasing and everything.

    My vision is to move Belk into the former Blacklion/Dillard's and overhaul the remainder of the mall into a development similar to Sparkleberry Square with an upgraded Kroger, perhaps a Kohl's and even Best Buy (or other similar stores that aren't already established in the emerging Ft. Jackson Blvd. retail corridor or Shoppes at Woodhill). This is unless they can land Macy's and/or Crate & Barrel in the empty department store anchors.

    Date: Wed, 4 Mar 2015 11:04:11 +0000
    Author: Dan R

    Comment: That drive thru has been there probably as long as the mall in its original layout. I had my first account there when it was C&S.
    I assume the Bank of America at Trenholm Plaza is going to be the main one in the area. The pour ridiculous amounts of money doing landscaping and renovations in it all the time.
    Can't get decent rates on my savings account, but hey the plants look nice.

    Date: Wed, 4 Mar 2015 17:26:46 +0000
    Author: palmettoconnection

    Comment: I thought that the original Richland Mall movie theaters were in the area of the bank and the drive through. I remember seeing Jaws there back in the dizzay.

    Date: Thu, 12 Mar 2015 12:32:29 +0000
    Author: John R

    Comment: A BOA atm kiosk at 415 Columbia Ave. in Lexington closed about 2 months ago. Perhaps this is just another case of corporate cost-cutting.

    Date: Sat, 21 Mar 2015 02:56:20 +0000
    Author: Cary

    Comment: The first C&S there was in a temporary kind of building up on the hill above the mall near the Russell Stover store. I still have a wooden nickel that says "Don't take any wooden nickels" and "C&S" on it that I got at the grand opening. They also had pony rides and some kind of show where a lady jumped a horse over a flaming bar. Not sure what the horses/western theme had to do with banking.

    As soon as they built the actual bank building up near where it is now, the temporary building went away. Ha, that just made me think about the little drive-thru post office that was up there too. I feel old. :(

    Date: Sat, 21 Mar 2015 18:33:54 +0000
    Author: Rick

    Comment: @Cary - If you remember the drive-thru post office you ARE old, as well am I, 'cause I remember it too.

    In the early 80's C&S was one of the first banks in Columbia to have ATM machines. The ATM's and the customers that used them were known as Financial Wizards.

    I was a customer and in the 80's I went to the ATM at C&S on Garners Ferry Road across from the VA Hospital. A couple of bud's were with me. We were headed to the Rosewood area to do a little bar hopping. You may remember Dundees's, The Library, The Tabbard Inn, etc,

    Well, as we pulled up to the ATM there was a car already parked in front of the ATM with some pecker head at the wheel. I got out and walked to the ATM, pecker head then got out of his car and came up behind me, tapped me on the shoulder and said in a shitty tone "I was here first" I said "NO you were in the parking lot first" and pointing at the ground where we stood at the ATM machine,
    I said "And I was HERE first".

    He copped an attitude and decided he wanted to fight over who got to use the ATM first. One of my buddies saw what was going on and got out of the car, my buddy was all of 5'5" tall.
    He walked up behind pecker head, opened his coat and began to draw out a Dan Wesson 44 Magnum with the 10" barrel, the gun looked bigger than my buddy. My buddy said "Is there a problem here?" Pecker head took one look and turned straight into a wennie head and said "NO, no problem." My little 5'5" buddy said "I didn't think so."
    I laughed my ass off all the way to the Tabbard Inn.

    I'm happy all got to hear from me today.

    Date: Sun, 22 Mar 2015 19:24:07 +0000
    Author: Andrew

    Comment: I'm too young to remember the drive-thru post offices but considering the way everything else has gone (banks, fast food restaurants, pharmacies, etc.) in favor of a drive-thru, I find it interesting that the post office has gone the reverse...

    Andy Rooney shared some food for thought at https://youtu.be/ID3RalIYytw about our Post Office...I've enjoyed utilizing just about every post office around at one point or another...they all have their pros and cons as well as their own quirks that make them interesting...

    The Columbia MPO on Assembly Street is the most long line prone and I think the way their passport line works makes things move slower than it typically would.

    Eau Claire's parking lot is tricky to navigate.

    Leesburg's counter was redone a few years to look more like the others but it used to run perpendicular to how it does now and it still feels foreign to have it that way the times I've been in it.

    Five Points has two guys behind the counter typically (and I recognize their faces from the times I've been in there) yet it closes for lunch and if one of them is out, the line moves at a snail pace.

    Edgewood sees more traffic than I realize but I feel it needs better visibility than it currently has.

    I remember Irmo's being built (and the sequence of events leading up to it) but can't find a plaque the way some of the others have showing what year it was build and dedicated to public service.

    Sandhills and Forest Acres are open until 2:00 on Saturdays which I've found handy. Dutch Fork used to be like that but it now closes at noon. Several others have morning hours on Saturday as well and someone commented to me that it felt like a waste of electricity for the abbreviated hours...

    I rarely use drive thru when getting something to eat but I do use it when I go to the bank. My bank typically uses a vacuum system but there is a branch in Blythewood that has a different conveyor system that I enjoy so much I make the trek over there to enjoy utilizing it.

    Date: Thu, 26 Mar 2015 20:44:36 +0000
    Author: Azrael

    Comment: I don't think it is the unconnected building that is a problem. Back in November or so, I discovered that the BoA drive-thrus on Gervais Street and at the tower had closed. I went in to do my banking and was told they were closing pretty much all of them "to better assist their customers with more modern day banking" or something to that effect. While I do a lot of banking tasks online, I was not happy that the drive thrus were closing. I was so excited to discover that the Beltline was still open as I don't live too far away from there; didn't realize that it had now closed, I feel like I was just there!

    Date: Tue, 26 May 2015 19:08:29 +0000
    Author: Mr.Hat

    Comment:
    I was told about a year ago that Richland Mall was trying to work a deal with Macy's for the old Dillard's space. But Macy's would only do it if they could get the BoA building in the deal to use as part of their parking lot because the Dillard's space had very limited parking outside of the store.

    Date: Tue, 26 May 2015 19:35:46 +0000
    Author: Andrew

    Comment:
    let's hope that Macy's does make the move then...Richland Mall to me is a better fit for Macy's...I'd be much more inclined to shop Macy's should they move to Richland Mall as I feel better about said mall...I also must confess that the idea of how Macy's at Richland Mall would revive said mall excites me to think about...

    Date: Wed, 27 May 2015 17:07:03 +0000
    Author: TahoeChic

    Comment:
    While I was hoping Macy's would move to Columbiana after Sears closed, I'd be happy with it at Richland Mall. I think I mentioned on another post how I really like Macy's but have completely stopped going there because Columbia Mall feels so unsafe now. The local car enthusiast gathering i sometimes attend recently moved to the Columbia Mall parking lot, and I didn't go this time because I just don't like the area. So here's hoping for Macy's to move to Richland!

    Date: Wed, 27 May 2015 21:37:54 +0000
    Author: Andrew

    Comment:
    I'm behind TahoeChic 100%...I'd be much more inclined to shop Macy's if they were in Richland Mall...Columbia Place does have new ownership that has a track record of turning troubled properties like Columbia Place Mall around and everything and I know Macy's leaving would be a huge setback for them but I think Richland Mall is a better fit for Macy's...

    ted

    3 Mar 15 at 7:09 pm

  2. The remaining building housing the bank will close July 26, 2016.
    From what I have heard, they closed the drive thru to focus on customer service and bring customers inside so they could sell them more services and build relationships with the clients. A move which with The news of the walk in section closing seems to have been foolish.
    The expected closing seems to be due to decreased business all the way around for the bank.
    The closest branches remaining are Trenholm Plaza and one on Garners Ferry.

    Mrs. M

    29 May 16 at 12:21 am

  3. I have noted signage indicating that this property has sold...

    Andrew

    3 Oct 17 at 11:12 pm

  4. I can second a notion in Have Your Say that this building has had its date with the excavator...property did sell but it remains to be seen how it pans out (stay tuned)...

    Andrew

    29 Aug 18 at 7:33 pm

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