Guaranty Bank opens first Ozark branch

The 4,500-square-foot Ozark branch, 1701 W. Highway J, is full-service, with a lobby, drive-through lanes, an automated teller machine, a mortgage lender and a corporate services employee, according to Guaranty Director of Marketing Carlye Wannenmacher. Hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8:30 a.m.–noon Saturday for the lobby, and 7:30 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8:30 a.m.–noon Saturday for the drive through. Susan Johanson is branch manager at the eight-employee office.

“Current and prospective customers have requested that we open a branch in Ozark, and we are pleased to finally meet the demand for our services there,” Guaranty President & CEO Shaun Burke said in a news release.

Construction also is about a month under way on Guaranty’s third Nixa branch, at Highway CC and Main Street, which should open in the fall, the release said. The bank has six branches in Springfield.

Guaranty's long-range plan includes locations in Republic, Wannenmacher said, though no specifics are in place. The bank also plans to remodel its Battlefield Road and North Glenstone Avenue locations this year, and officials are working this summer to purchase an undisclosed piece of property to build a new operations center.

Shares (Nasdaq: GFED) closed Friday at $23.99, compared to a 52-week range of $22.35 to $30.85.