The closing of one local bank is opening an opportunity for another.

The former American Home Bank headquarters in Mountville, nearly vacant for a year, has been leased by Susquehanna Bank.

Susquehanna is spending $3 million to convert the 44,000-square-foot building into a corporate training facility for its entire four-state region.

"We'd been looking for the better part of two years for a central training facility," said William J. Reuter, chairman and chief executive officer.

"This is about as central as we can get."

Once it opens Aug. 6, the Susquehanna Learning and Resource Center is expected to host more than 100 employees daily for training.

Some trainings will last for several days — good news for area hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, Reuter noted.

Susquehanna estimates that its visiting trainees will account for 3,000 room-nights a year in area hotels.

The new training center will replace a decentralized approach that has Susquehanna using 26 buildings a year, Scott D. Macbeth, vice president and director of learning and performance, said.

Some 90 percent of its face-to-face training sessions now will be provided in the new center, Macbeth said.

Reuter said the result will be more consistent and effective instruction.

"There are a lot of benefits to training people centrally. You get them away from their workplace, so they're not interrupted, and you build camaraderie," he said.

About 40 Susquehanna employees in the training and corporate human resources departments will be based there.

American Home Bank, a residential mortgage lender, opened the Hempland Road and Stony Battery Road building in 2005.

The building served as its headquarters, replacing offices on Estelle Drive.

Developed at a cost of $6.5 million and leased from developer High Properties, the building debuted with about 100 employees.

American Home officials noted optimistically that the structure could house up to 225.

Its workforce grew but never reached that lofty level.

Instead, amid a series of acquisitions, its workforce soon sank to zero.

In the first deal, American Home was acquired by First Chester County Corp. in 2008 for $18.2 million.

Then, two years later, as First Chester was being purchased by Tower Bancorp, First Chester said it wanted to sell American Home.

No takers were found.

Tower Bancorp completed its purchase of First Chester, including American Home, in late 2010.

Tower Bancorp likewise tried to divest American Home, to no avail.

So in early 2011, it closed American Home, idling 112 workers at the Mountville site.

The only operation Tower Bancorp kept there was a branch of its Graystone Bank.

That branch closed in February when Tower Bancorp was acquired by Susquehanna.

Having scoured the area for a central training site, Susquehanna saw the property as a perfect fit for that use.

Besides the location in the middle of its four-state footprint, the site has 240 parking spaces and is within a stone's throw of Route 30.

And the one-floor layout is well-suited for trainings, meetings and other activities.

So Susquehanna and High Properties tore up the old original lease and signed a new 10-year agreement.

Ruth M. Devenney of High Associates Ltd., which represents High Properties, handled the transaction.

High Associates also is overseeing the renovations.

Numerous area contractors and suppliers who are business customers of Susquehanna are participating in the project.

The work began by gutting the structure down to its shell to create a high-tech, comfortable and versatile facility.

Susquehanna recycled the building's furnishings from its American Home days, said Richard C. Arcuri, building project and leasing manager.

Some of the old furnishings were sent to other Susquehanna facilities. Others were donated to charity, he said.

When the center is finished, it will include 12 training rooms, four of them with accordion-style walls so they can be divided into smaller sizes.

A main purpose of the center will be to provide a place to train tellers, financial service representatives and lenders.

It also will be used for orientation and welcome sessions for all new employees, as well as other company meetings and events.

Susquehanna will use the facility to train not only bank employees but employees of sister firms.

These provide asset management, car leasing, commercial leasing, insurance and other services, Reuter said.

The bank and its sister businesses are part of an umbrella firm, Susquehanna Bancshares, a holding company formed 30 years ago.

At its start, Susquehanna Bancshares had a mere $335 million in assets, 250 employees and 15 bank offices, all in northern Lancaster County.

Now, because of internal growth and 35 acquisitions, Susquehanna Bancshares has $17.8 billion in assets, 3,400 employees and 261 bank offices in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and West Virginia.

tmekeel@lnpnews.com