Apple Bank Branch In Crown Heights Closes Over COVID for the Third Time

by CrownHeights.info

Apple Bank’s Crown Heights branch has made the community aware that it will be temporarily closed again due to the impact of COVID-19.

“Due to the impact of COVID-19 in the area, we are temporarily closing this Apple Bank branch location,” a notice left on the door said.

This marks the third time the branch closed this year, all over alleged COVID-19 related incidents. The first time the branch closed was in mid-March, with the second closure taking place at the beginning of November.

With each closure being for two weeks, the branch wrote that “We apologize for any inconvenience,” a statement that is not sitting well among the bank’s clientele.

“They should not be closed,” one Crown Heights resident told CrownHeights.info. “If there was an exposure amount the staff, I understand, send other staff. If there was no exposure, then this is a complete excuse.”

An effort to exert pressure on the bank to re-open the branch has begun with the request that the bank’s clientele lodge a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, noting that the branch’s closure is creating undue hardship during an already stressed time.

The wording regarding the closure has also sparked some concern, as the infection rates in the Crown Heights area codes are not significantly larger than the rest of the city, begging the question of why this branch.

The complaint to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau can be filed by clicking here.