ACMG Federal Credit Union rebranding to Salt City FCU

SOLVAY — ACMG Federal Credit Union on Jan. 22 announced it is rebranding and moving forward as Salt City Federal Credit Union (Salt City FCU). “Our new name honors Syracuse’s industrious past, the economic and natural resilience of our region and celebrates the growth, success and staying power of the credit union,” Bill Lester, chair of the Salt City FCU board of directors, contended in the announcement. “The name also pays tribute to generations of strong leadership and loyal members who define who we are today.” Salt mining near Onondaga Lake “sparked the region’s industrial prowess” at the turn of the 20th century, and how Syracuse got its nickname, per the credit union’s announcement. The salt was mined near where the credit union was founded in 1953 by a handful of Solvay Process employees with 28 members and $124 on deposit. “In our 70-plus years, we have never wavered from our core mission of improving financial lives. Our commitment to personalized service is something only a truly local financial institution can provide, and we’re proud of that,” Salt City’s CEO Brian May noted in the announcement. “We’re large enough to deliver all the services members need and small enough to care.” The credit union’s leaders emphasized this is simply a name change and not the result of a merger or partnership with another financial institution. “We wanted a new name and image that is more familiar and approachable for current and prospective members. We think we accomplished that,” May said in the announcement. Salt City FCU is headquartered at 1753 Milton Ave. in Solvay, and it operates a branch at 4800 S. Salina St. in Syracuse’s Valley section. The credit union has 24 employees between both locations, says May, who spoke with CNYBJ in a Jan. 28 phone interview. He also says Salt City FCU used its own financial resources to work on the rebranding process. Along with the new name, a logo has been developed featuring an eagle soaring over Onondaga Lake. It’s a metaphor for the resilience of the credit union and the region, as Onondaga Lake is making a historic come back and the eagle population is growing, Salt City FCU noted.

Renovation

Besides the name change and rebrand, Salt City FCU is also in the middle of a full renovation of its Solvay headquarters, which is expected to be completed this spring. “We started in mid-September, and we anticipated being done [in] mid-April,” says May. JW Construction Services, Inc. of DeWitt is the general contractor on the project. May also noted the credit union is working with Milwaukee, Wisconsin–based LaMacchia Group, a design-build firm that services credit unions and banks, on the effort. May declined to provide a specific project-cost figure, but he described it as a “significant investment.”