Chase eyes branch locations in Wethersfield, Farmington

HBJ Photo | Joe Cooper A Chase Bank branch in downtown Hartford.

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By Matt Pilon

After planting its flag in downtown Hartford last year amid plans for further expansion in the region, JPMorgan Chase Bank is now eyeing new branch locations in Wethersfield and Farmington.

The company, which operates under the brand Chase Bank, has applied to Wethersfield town officials to open a branch at 1151 Silas Deane Highway, the site of a former Tilted Kilt Restaurant and Pub.

Chase spokeswoman Carolyn Evert said Wednesday the branch is slated to open in the first quarter of 2021. She also disclosed that Chase is eying its first Farmington branch, which would also open next year.

Meanwhile, Chase’s new West Hartford branch will open in May of this year, and a South Windsor branch will open in September, she said.

Along with the Wethersfield branch opening next year, Chase also plans to open branches in Glastonbury and Enfield.

Chase currently has 49 branches and 112 ATMs throughout Connecticut, Evert said. The bank’s $5.82 billion in Connecticut deposits (as of June 30, 2019) makes it the sixth largest bank operating in the state, according to federal data.

The Wethersfield Town Council reported Tuesday that Chase had a pending application for a 3,470-square-foot branch with a drive-up ATM at the Silas Deane Highway site. A meeting to review the application has not yet been scheduled.

The Tilted Kilt opened at the site in 2012. The troubled chain has since closed both its Connecticut locations (the other was in Milford). After numerous closures in recent years, the chain was acquired in 2018 by a Florida-based holding company.

Tilted Kilt, which made a few headlines locally -- for delivering an order of wings by drone and criticism of its provocative waitress uniforms -- now lists 25 open U.S. locations on its website.

That’s down from 80 locations at the end of 2017, according to Restaurant Business Online.