With what its CEO is calling a “flagship branch,” Service One Credit Union is set to plant its flag firmly in an area of downtown Bowling Green ripe for revitalization.

The credit union, which started in 1963 with a single location on the Western Kentucky University campus, will open a two-story, 15,000-square-foot headquarters branch at 101 State St. on June 20 in the heart of the historic Shake Rag District.

Located just a stone’s throw from where the city of Bowling Green and private developers are aiming to build a recreation area along Barren River, the $8 million structure is seen by SOCU leadership as a catalyst for further development.

“I really like the fact that we are in the Shake Rag District,” said Rebecca Stone, Service One’s CEO. “That property gives us a real opportunity to build something that’s community-based.”

Stone and other members of SOCU’s corporate leadership will move to the second floor of the new building while the first floor will be both a bank branch and a community lobby.

That lobby will have a fireplace, USB ports, a coffee station, a patio and a meeting area. The building will also include an outdoor pavilion, solar panels on the roof that power the building and two electric vehicle charging stations.

“We talked about what we could do for the community, so we thought we’d build a building that serves the community and is also a branch,” Stone said. “We want it to feel like you’re at home.”

Duncan Hines, hired recently as manager for the new headquarters branch, echoes Stone’s thoughts.

“We want people to come out, feel relaxed and ask questions,” said Hines, who worked briefly at Service One after earning an economics degree in college but has worked primarily in hospitality and tourism for nearly two decades.

Hines, though, doesn’t see his new role as a huge departure.

“The product is different, but what you do is similar to the hospitality world,” he said. “It’s not a giant leap to do it.”

The spacious State Street branch is a giant leap for SOCU, but it’s one the credit union’s board of directors saw as beneficial.

“It’s going to be fantastic,” said Pat Stewart, current chairman of the SOCU board of directors. “Putting that branch there will spark other development next door.

“We’ll be able to serve the community better. It’s a better location than what we had on the bypass.”

The credit union has been hamstrung on the half-acre lot at 543 U.S. 31-W Bypass that is home to its current 4,000-square-foot branch.

“We’ve outgrown that building,” Stone said. “I think this (new branch) will help our members tremendously.”

Stone said the credit union has sold the bypass property to McCay and Associates Insurance, which will move from its location at 505 U.S. 31-W Bypass into the former SOCU building.

Service One’s move to State Street puts it in the heart of the Shake Rag District that is on the National Register of Historic Places for its significance to African-American history.

Stone says the credit union will extend its planned pavilion with a community garden that will include information about the Shake Rag District.

“We didn’t want to just put a plaque there,” she said. “We want to pay homage to the Shake Rag community.”

While honoring the historic African-American community, the new SOCU branch also has the potential to be a catalyst for further growth in a long-dormant part of Bowling Green.

“This is going to make a statement,” said Ron Bunch, president and CEO of the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce, during a December 2022 groundbreaking for the branch. “The site that Service One selected will be transformative for the downtown area.”

The new branch also continues a transformation for SOCU, which has a growing presence throughout southcentral Kentucky. It now has three Bowling Green branches and locations in Glasgow, Scottsville, Hopkinsville and Russellville.

The acquisitions have boosted Service One’s assets from $194 million four years ago to $270 million today.