Wells Fargo cuts 350 jobs as Concord lease ends

With the closure of Wells Fargo Bank’s last location on Concord Avenue, all of its non-branch operations in Concord will be downtown at Swift Plaza by the first half of 2020.

In making this move to streamline operations, the bank is cutting 350 employees at the Customer Contact Center.
The financial institution now occupies two Grant Avenue offices totaling 335,000 sq. ft. near the Concord BART Station, with more than 2,000 employees.

Starting with one office in 1986 at 1200 Concord Ave., Wells Fargo’s local presence eventually expanded to a second adjacent office space at 1220 Concord Ave. Over time, operations were consolidated at the second location.

Knowing the lease on the Concord Avenue space across from Sam’s Club was set to expire, the company decided in October to shutter that operation. Eligible employees were offered relocation packages to continue with Wells Fargo at other domestic contact centers, including Salt Lake City, Phoenix, San Antonio and Charlotte, N.C. It is not known how many displaced workers have accepted the offers.

“This business decision enables us to streamline optimize our contact center operations and locations at a time when our lease term is ending,” said Wells Fargo spokeswoman Andreas Beasley.

Impacted employees include those who interact with customers through phone, email, social media and other virtual channels, as well as those who support customer service activities.

John Montagh, Concord’s economic development manager, points to the “big picture” regarding the consolidation. “There are more employees than in the past, and they are still here,” he said.

The Concord Avenue building’s owner, Sierra Pacific Properties, made a significant investment to make it a more attractive destination. Tenants, including Cerus Corp. with more than 100 employees, have signed leases at 1220 Concord Ave. Cerus took over about 85,000 sq. ft., moving from around the corner at a location along Stanwell Street.

According to Breck Lutz, exclusive agent with Swift Real Estate Partners, a pair of deals for 60,000 and 75,000 sq. ft., respectively, are in the works to fill the 1220 Concord Ave. space vacated by Wells Fargo. Chicago Title, Fidelity Title, Contra Costa County Retirement Association, AIG and Jensen Hughes have already leased space.

These changes on the commercial real estate front comes as the vacancy rate in Concord for Class A office space sits at 20 percent. According to Montagh, Concord is in competition with other communities along the 680 corridor that are seeking to attract businesses to their office stock.

“If tenants want to be central-located, with amenities and a reverse commute for employees, Concord shines bright for those requirements,” he said.

Lutz noted that another 125,000 sq. ft. of office space is available at Swift Plaza if Wells Fargo needs more room. However, Beasley said there are no discussions about closing other East Bay locations and shifting those jobs to Concord.