Community First has served Nassau County with a branch in Yulee since 2018 and has nearly 10,000 members in the county with about 2,000 in the Wildlight area. It also has a branch under construction in Callahan that it plans to open in 2025.

The credit union also bought a 1.22-acre commercial lot Dec. 4 in Green Cove Springs in Clay County. The credit union has not yet decided when to start building or open the branch, but it expects it to be its 27^th.

The credit union has served Clay County for 70 years and has branches in Orange Park and Fleming Island. The credit union has 16,000 members who live in the county. Growth in the area is expected to increase with the completion of the First Coast Expressway toll road connecting Duval, Clay and St. Johns Counties.

Both the Clay and Nassau county branches will be 3,100-square-foot, freestanding buildings with a drive-thru, two ATMs and the credit union’s signature tower feature.

Community First is undertaking its largest historic investment in its branch network with seven new branches announced or opened since 2022 when it had 19 locations. The credit union recently announced the opening of its Gate Parkway Branch, the start of construction of its Beachwalk Branch, the start of construction for its Callahan Branch and property purchase for a Treaty Oaks location in St. Johns.

The credit union had had 24 branches and other locations on Sept. 30 (including its Jacksonville headquarters) — three more than a year earlier.
In other branch news:

• Truliant Federal Credit Union of Winston Salem, N.C. ($5.2 billion, 344,463 members) announced Dec. 23 that it plans to open a new branch at 3410 Robinhood Road in Winston-Salem in the second quarter of 2025. It is renovating a 3,328-square-foot branch abandoned by Truist Bank about a year ago. This will be Truliant’s fourth branch location in Winston-Salem and its sixth in Forsyth County The credit union had 36 branches on Sept. 30, three fewer than a year earlier.
• Golden 1 Credit Union of Sacramento, Calif. ($19.6 billion in assets, 1.1 million members) opened a new branch Dec. 20 in Folsom, Calif., 23 miles east of Sacramento. The Folsom Ranch Branch is located at 3230 East Bidwell Street in Folsom. The credit union had 63 branches and other on Sept. 30, two fewer than a year earlier.
• South Carolina Federal Credit Union of North Charleston, S.C. ($2.5 billion, 173,960 members) announced Dec. 17 that it has opened a branch at 111 The Parkway in Greenville, 200 miles northwest of Charleston. The Thornblade branch is the credit union’s fifth in Greenville. The credit union had 33 branches on Sept. 30, two fewer than a year earlier.
• First New York Federal Credit Union of Albany, N.Y. ($488.4 million, 37,958 members) announced Dec. 12 that it is moving its Rotterdam branch to a new stand-alone location in April. The branch will move 1.6 miles from its current address at 1879 Altamont Avenue to 3085 Carman Road. The credit union had nine branches on Sept. 30, unchanged from a year earlier.
• EECU Credit Union of Fort Worth, Texas ($4 billion, 288,605 members) on Dec. 2 announced it had opened a branch at The Shops at Chisholm Trail Ranch in Fort Worth, becoming EECU’s 19th branch in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The credit union had 18 branches on Sept. 30, unchanged from a year earlier.
• Community Powered Federal Credit Union of Bear, Del. ($121 million, 8,640 members) announced Nov. 26 that it had opened a branch in New Castle, Del., six miles northeast of Bear and six miles south of Wilmington. The credit union had three branches on Sept. 30, unchanged from a year earlier.
• First Technology Federal Credit Union of San Jose, Calif. ($17.5 billion, 708,434 members) announced Dec. 20 it has opened a new branch in downtown Bellevue, Wash., in the 555 Tower next to Amazon. It replaces a downtown branch that closed in early 2024. The credit union had 38 branches on Sept. 30, two fewer than a year earlier.
• Northern Credit Union of Watertown, N.Y., 70 miles north of Syracuse. ($622.7 million, 44,711 members) announced Nov. 4 that it has bought a former Red Lobster restaurant on Arsenal Street in Watertown, and will be converting it into a new branch.

Northern CU Present/CEO Dan St. Hilaire said “it will take some time to prepare the new space to meet our high standards for service,” but he did not state when it was expected to open.

After the new branch opens, the credit union said it will eventually sell its Factory and Commerce locations in Watertown. However, it plans to keep the drive-thru open at the Factory Street location. The credit union had 11 branches on Sept. 30, unchanged from a year earlier.

Contact Jim DuPlessis at [email protected].