An open house will be held on Oct. 19 to celebrate the grand opening of the new building for First International Bank & Trust in Rugby, which opened on Oct. 4. There will be coffee, cake and tours of the new facility from 2-4 p.m. that day. The Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon cutting and dedication of the HUB from 4-4:30 p.m. A community dinner celebration featuring the famous HUB stew will follow from 4:30-7 p.m.
“We want to make sure we do the (HUB corner) pride,” said Tanner Johnson, president of the Rugby branch of First International Bank. Johnson, who grew up in Rugby, said the location at the intersection of Highways 2 and 3 is at the “iconic corner” where the HUB restaurant and hotel were once located.
“That was definitely a landmark, an iconic place back in the 1970s and ’80s into the ’90s,” said Johnson. The bank wanted to honor that history and has installed the old 16′ diameter HUB sign above the stone hearth fireplace in the bank’s gallery. “We wanted to pay our respects,” said Johnson. The old HUB building was torn down in 2014, said Johnson.
The new 20,000 square-foot First International Bank & Trust facility, located at 215 Highway 2 SW, features a modern cabin feel with a timber roof-line and plenty of glass to offer a panoramic view of the prairie. Johnson said the branch has been operating in a temporary location since November 2015. He said the temporary location will be closed for good by November.
Johnson said the new building also includes a suite of offices rented by Voeller Crop Insurance and Kat and Company Accounting. A third office is available for rent. First International Bank & Trust is owned by Watford City Bancshares, Inc., which is owned by the Stenehjem family. Johnson said the family takes pride in being a family-owned business for four generations.
First International Bank & Trust is a full service, independent community bank, a member of FDIC and an equal housing lender. First International Bank & Trust has been in business since 1910 and today operates 27 locations in North Dakota, Minnesota and Arizona. More information about the company can be found at firstintlbank.com.
