Ruben Pulido, Wells Fargo vice president of corporate communications for the Pacific North Region, stated in an email that East Palo Alto residents have access to a bank two miles away in Palo Alto. But the residents said it's not easy to get to, given the area's traffic congestion.

But residents are focused in part on Wells because of its past commercial real-estate presence, they said. One City Council member said the giant financial institution made promises in the past to add a full-service bank but reneged.

San Mateo Credit Union opened a branch in the city in October 2011 and offers all kinds of banking services, but the only commercial bank with a presence in the city is Bank of America, which operates an ATM outside city hall. To be fair, residents acknowledge, no other bank has stepped in either.

It's the least the multinational company can do, they say, given that not too long ago it owned the largest chunk of residential real estate, in the city comprising the majority of its low-income housing: the 107-acre, 1,800-unit Woodland Park apartments.

A group of East Palo Alto residents who are Wells Fargo customers want the bank to open a branch — or at least install an ATM — in their city.

East Palo Alto resident Mark Dinan stands beside the only commercial bank ATM in East Palo Alto, which is at the entrance to East Palo Alto City Hall. He's lobbying for Wells Fargo to install an ATM or branch in the city. Photo by Adam Pardee.

"Our physical distribution strategy is driven by customer behavior. While branches continue to be important in serving our customers' needs, our investment in digital has also enabled us to seamlessly serve our customers online and in our mobile apps, and their growing usage of mobile banking for their day-to-day banking needs continues to reduce transactions in our branches."

An online map of Wells branches and ATMs shows the bank offers few services east of U.S. Highway 101 throughout the San Francisco Bay Peninsula except for in more upscale communities such as Redwood Shores, Foster City and North San Jose. Meanwhile, dozens of branches and ATMs line the Peninsula to the west of 101.

"Look at a map of where they have customer service locations. They cut out East Palo Alto and Belle Haven, but there's a new branch office on Middlefield Road and Colorado Avenue in Palo Alto," he said, regarding an office that opened a few years ago.

"It's a major inconvenience to have to go to Palo Alto, Menlo Park or Redwood City. It takes more than 45 minutes to get to downtown Palo Alto in rush-hour traffic. Imagine if you don't have a car," said Mark Dinan, a Wells Fargo customer and East Palo Alto resident who has spearheaded a petition to get a Wells presence in the city.

"I think the most important part of this situation is, it makes some of us feel like we're 'not good business' enough, or 'not safe enough.' I've been their customer for over 17 years, opened the account in Palo Alto. I was renting there before buying a house in East Palo Alto and regularly go there to get cash or issue checks that I want other people to cash on a short trip. Going to Palo Alto, although only two miles away, sometimes takes 40 minutes or more. And they also may be missing the opportunity to serve Facebook, Amazon, Google, Stanford and other companies' employees nearby. This community is changing a lot, but it seems like some of the old opinions are still there," he stated in an email.

Dinan and others said there's plenty of business in the city for a commercial bank. East Palo Alto in recent decades has become a thriving community with construction, offices, commercial and retail development and housing. And more is on the way.

At the very least, an ATM could be located in one of East Palo Alto's stores, including the Target, Home Depot and Cardenas Market, he said.

But online banking doesn't take into account the digital divide. Many residents of less-affluent communities don't have computers or laptops, Dinan and others noted. And other bank ATMs charge non-customers a fee for each transaction.

Bank of America, the bank with the ATM, did not return a request for comment on whether it might open a branch office in East Palo Alto.

But "we currently do not have a ... relationship with Wells Fargo Bank based on their lack of presence in our community. Much to our dismay Wells Fargo Bank opted to open an additional Palo Alto branch a few years ago on Middlefield. I personally inquired as to whether or not, at a minimum, they could place a Wells Fargo Bank ATM in East Palo Alto and was deferred to corporate.

"I have been a long-time Wells Fargo Bank consumer and business customer. Prior to moving to East Palo Alto, I learned that my father-in-law was also a long-time Wells Fargo Bank customer and was surprised to learn that we had to travel to Palo Alto to conduct our banking services as there was no branch or ATM in East Palo Alto," Lewis-Virge stated in an email, adding that her church banks with Wells Fargo, but she has canceled her personal account there.

But some residents, like Rev. Deborah Lewis-Virges, pastor of Saint Mark AME Zion Church, say they are withdrawing their business from Wells because it isn't supportive.

"We were told they were coming in with a full-service bank. I don't know if it was tied to the real estate interest, but they also offered small grants to nonprofits. They put on a big show and then — boom. No bank, no grants," Moody said.

Yet about eight years ago, Wells had an enormous presence in East Palo Alto through the Woodland Park housing portfolio, which it acquired after the previous owner, Page Mill Properties, defaulted on a $50 million payment.

Moody said that while Wells may have a strong customer base in the community, it has made no commitment to be present.

Two months after the savings and loan closed, San Mateo Credit Union opened its doors in the same location at the Ravenswood 101 Shopping Center. On Wednesday morning, a long line reached nearly to the door at its office. The credit union has been an avid supporter of the community, sponsoring sports events, giving small grants and hiring local people to work behind the counters, where young people have been introduced to banking careers, Moody said.

City Councilman Larry Moody said California Bank & Trust made a go of banking in the city from 2002 to 2011. But the business-and-professions bank never had enough clients, although it had good intentions to serve the community.

East Palo Alto residents want Wells Fargo branch

Despite a growing need, the city has no commercial bank