Residents of South Stormont gathered peacefully outside the BMO Branch to raise awareness of their concerns regarding the closure of the Ingleside Bank of Montreal branch slated for July 25, 2025. Thompson Goddard Photo

INGLESIDE – There was a peacefully gathering of concerned South Stormont residents near the BMO Branch at the plaza in Ingleside on Feb. 12.

The group were there to demonstrate their concern regarding the planned closure of the branch on July 25 of this year. Despite the cold weather over 50 people gathered, many with signs with messages to bank officials to reverse the decision announced earlier this year. Inside the bank the opportunity for the public to meet with bank officials to discuss the closure was made available.

“These decisions are carefully considered. We will ensure clients can transition smoothly.” commented Jeff Roman, Director, Enterprise Media Relations at BMO in response to a message from The Record. Customers affected by the closure will be able to bank “at our Morrisburg branch at 49 Main St., Morrisburg, Ontario – or any other branch within our entire branch network.” When asked about the reason for the proposed closure, he replied “We continuously assess our operations – including our branch network – to adapt to changing consumer preferences for service delivery.”

Since the announcement, residents and municipal officials have expressed concerns regarding the effect on the community about the only financial institution in South Stormont closing. These include the expected population increase in the municipality in the coming years as well as the accessibility to banking for many residents.

The municipality has provided information on this issue to residents on their website as well as discussed, the issue during council meetings since the announcement was made. There is information available at www.southstormont.ca/BMO-Closure, with some residents mentioning there is a petition currently circulating in the community on this matter.

Perhaps Patsy Timmers, co-owner of Foodland in Ingleside, sums it up best when she states “It will be a huge loss for this community.”