Source: Shutterstock. Chicago Patrolmen's Federal Credit Union acquired a minority stake in the design and building firm Structure First, Ltd. on Thursday. The new partnership structure means Structure First will become the first and only Owner's Representative CUSO in the country that serves financial institutions with building projects.
According to details of the announcement, Chicago Patrolmen's ($508 million in assets, more than 38,000 members) minority stake in Structure First will allow the firm to serve as a CUSO effective immediately, with a primary focus on credit unions and banks located in the Midwest and Southern United States with assets of up to $5 billion .
"As the first and only Owner's Representative CUSO serving financial institutions, Structure First is now poised to expand coast-to-coast while still maintaining its niche industry foothold and hands-on approach as a program manager in the design, bid and build of headquarters, branches and branch transformations," the announcement said.
To date, Structure First has served more than 50 financial institutions since its inception in 2011.
"Community financial institutions need to be able to compete with larger national competitors to provide the right member/customer experience that fits their market, brand and operations. Our cost-effective approach allows them to explore different delivery models and create spaces that are completed on time and on budget," Neil Kool, principal/CEO of Structure First, said.
Chicago Patrolmen's CEO Scott Arney said, "We know, first-hand, the amount of time, energy and soft costs that go into projects of this nature. If a credit union is contemplating any growth or changes in their facilities, the Structure First model will be their most valuable resource from start to finish."
The announcement did not specify the amount paid by the credit union to acquire the minority stake in Structure First.
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Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at mogden@cutimes.com. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
