Chase Bank plans Irwin branch along Route 30

A New York-based national bank is planning to build its first full-service branch in Westmoreland County along Route 30 in Irwin at the site of a former Greek restaurant.

A contractor is demolishing Andros Restaurant at 9399 Route 30, for JP Morgan Chase Bank National Association, which purchased the ½-acre property for $700,000 from ADK Ventures Inc. of Penn Township, according to documents filed with the county Recorder of Deeds office.

ADK Ventures bought the property in 2002 for $225,000.

The branch should open in the fourth quarter of this year, said Justin Page, a spokesman for JP Morgan Chase. It will have between 12 and 15 employees and will have drive-thru service.

While Chase has automated teller machines in Murrysville and Lower Burrell, this will be its first full-service bank in the county, according to the bank’s website. It has about 10 branches in the Pittsburgh area.

Chase Bank selected the site following a market study, Page said.

“It’s all about a greater expansion into the Pittsburgh region,” he said.

Chase Bank is the retail banking arm of JP Morgan Chase Bank, which is rated by the Federal Reserve as the nation’s largest bank with $3.2 trillion in assets. The largest Pittsburgh-based financial institution is Pittsburgh Financial Services Group Inc., with assets of $469.3 billion. It operates PNC Bank.

Irwin council approved the site plans for the 2,300-square-foot building after PennDOT approved the highway occupancy permit for access from Route 30, said Justin Kachmarek, borough planning director.

The bank agreed to rebuild a retaining wall in the rear of the property, Kachmarek said.