'Shame on them': last bank in Louisbourg, N.S., slated to close
The Royal Bank of Canada has been the only place to bank in Louisbourg, N.S., for many years. But now, the company says it is closing the branch on Sept. 22.
“We lost our school and that hurt. If we lose our bank, I don’t know where we go from here,” said long-time resident Ellen Cross.
The reason for the closure is there is not enough foot traffic, said Jenna Lahey, CEO of the Cape Breton Regional Chamber of Commerce.
While the number of people using the bank has declined over the years, she's not in favour of the company pulling out.
“We also have a huge number of tourists that travel to Louisbourg on a daily basis and now they’re not going to be able to get money out of a bank machine,” said Lahey.
“We’re going to have to have a sign that says, ‘last chance to stop for cash,’ at some point.”
Lahey, who is from Louisbourg, says the town is finally making a comeback after the closure of the ground fishery, with new families moving in and businesses starting up.
Now, she says this is another thing standing in its way.
“We’re growing," said Lahey. "We have a massive project that has developed down on the waterfront and we’ve been working really hard to get things back up to where they had been before."
“It’s one more barrier we have to overcome in order to grow our town to where it should be.”
The nearest RBC to Louisbourg is in Sydney, more than a 30-minute drive away.
RBC says it is looking at ways to assist in-branch users — especially seniors — through the transition.
A public meeting is set for April 17 to tell the public of the bank's decision and to answer questions.
Cross feels plans to shut down the bank have been in the works for some time.
“For the last two years they've been asking us to do online banking,” said Cross. “Every time we go into the branch it's, ‘have you done online banking, do you know how to do it?’”
“They did that so they could close this bank, which I think is shameful, shame on them.”
Lahey says there will be no jobs lost with the closure and current employees have the option to work at another branch.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Louis Gossett Jr., 1st Black man to win supporting actor Oscar, dies at 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries 'Roots,' has died. He was 87.
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.