Mark Wittwer

NorthSide Community Bank

NorthSide Community Bank, with over $250 million in assets, is the only community bank headquartered in Gurnee. The bank was chartered in 1997 and has 4 locations in the Chicago metropolitan area and Lake County. The bank was formed in 1996 by a professional group of business men and women to better respond to the market place. When the bank looked for a center of operation, Gurnee was an obvious choice as it was one of the fastest growing communities in Illinois. Lake County provided a diverse business market from small to medium sized manufacturing as well as a strong mix of retail and service businesses. The experience of the bank's management team was able to respond successfully to the variety of needs that this market place required. Over the next 10 years the bank expanded to 4 locations in communities that blended well with our staff and our business lines. NorthSide Community Bank has 40 full time employees and has an experienced and professional local management team. The bank offers a complete product line of commercial loans and services in addition to a compliment of retail of loan products and personal loan products. The bank is well capitalized and has a lending limit in excess of $10 million. The board of directors and management has navigated through the great recession and the stagnant recovery. By design our assets have decreased as we anticipated a lengthy recovery. Management worked through many difficult situations with our customers and tried to find the best solution for our customers. We are very proud of a quote by one of our customers as it confirms a successful delivery of our business strategy. "When I refer business to the bank, I tell them they are going to get personal, professional, and a quick response to their needs. They take care of business and they take care of you. We can concentrate on business because they are concentrating on theirs." J.B. – A long-time NorthSide Community Bank Customer