Paper City Savings Bank – building on a century of service in the heart of Wisconsin

Judith Munson

Contributor

July 7, 2025

NORTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN – Paper City Savings Bank is celebrating a series of growth-related milestones that include opening a new branch location, earning “Large Business of the Year” honors from the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce and successfully launching a commercial lending division.

Much of this growth, Fred Siemers, bank CEO/president, said, is driven by the bank’s keen understanding of the market it serves, and how its needs are changing.

A look back, forward

Per pcs.bank, Paper City Savings Bank has served Wisconsin Rapids and the surrounding area since 1923.

Its name is inspired by the region’s paper manufacturing industry – past and present – with several paper mills still operating in the area, and Wisconsin Rapids referred to by locals as “Paper City.”

Though the main branch is located in Wisconsin Rapids (4200 8th St. South), Siemers said the bank has branches in Nekoosa (226 Market St.) and Plover (2558 Post Road), with the latter getting a major update earlier this year.

“We’ve had a presence in the Plover market for about a decade in a very small, undersized office location, but we expanded and moved to a new location in February,” he said.

Siemers said the new Plover location includes drive-thru services and larger meeting spaces.

The bank’s headquarters in Wisconsin Rapids, he said, also recently experienced a major refresh – which contributed to its nomination for the chamber’s business of the year recognition.

“We were very honored to be nominated and eventually win the Large Business of the Year award from the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce,” he said. 

Siemers said the renovation project that supported the bank’s recognition was “truly transformational.”

“We took our existing lobby down to the ground and rebuilt it,” he said. “We updated and modernized our meeting and conference room facilities, creating much-improved meeting, conference and training spaces. Feedback from the community has been positive, with employees and customers appreciating the updated look and feel of the new facility.”

The $4-million complete renovation project, Siemers said, included an investment in new Interactive Teller Machine (ITM) technology – “which allows our customers access to transactional banking services 24/7 with the use of their debit card.”

The ITM service, Siemers said, is key for serving Paper City’s customers, many of whom often need to conduct business outside of normal business hours.

“It allows people to bank at their convenience, not restricted by our hours,” he said.

Siemers said ITMs differ from ATMs by enabling check cashing, loan payments and other services usually requiring a teller.

Small business support

All these changes, Siemers said, are underscored by a simultaneous rebranding, as Paper City has entered the business banking sector – resulting in a new logo and a new name.

“The rebrand better reflects our new full-service banking options,” he said. “Throughout our 100-plus-year history, we have been very strong in the residential mortgage lending area. But about five and a half years ago, we expanded our services to include business banking services. And that has also been very successful for us. We’ve grown our business banking clientele quite significantly.”

Siemers said changing the name from Paper City Savings to Paper City Savings Bank better reflects the financial institution’s full spectrum of banking offerings.

Demand from existing customers, he said, helped spur the bank’s decision to offer commercial lending.

“A lot of these folks are also small business owners and were asking us about whether we could provide business banking services,” he said.

Though paper mills and other large-scale employers are crucial to the economy in Wisconsin Rapids, Siemers said Paper City recognizes that nearly half of employees in Wisconsin – per the Small Business Administration – are employed by small businesses.

“As our local economy goes through transition, we’re seeing a lot more people interested in forming their own small- to medium-sized businesses, and we’re uniquely suited to provide those services, because we’re very much focused on our community and serving its needs,” he said. “We don’t shy away from working with a small business owner. No business is too small to work with us.”

Siemers said the bank has kept pace with how the local economy has transitioned from primarily industrial to growth in other areas, such as recreation, with more tourists visiting the area.

“We’ve had significant expansion with the Sand Valley golf resort near Nekoosa, which has grown its employment ranks over the years – invested in the area and provided entrepreneurial opportunities that revolve around Sand Valley,” he said. “More localized tourism is building around our lakes and rivers with people buying primary and/or secondary vacation-type housing in the Nepco Lake area and along the Wisconsin River.”

Beyond tourism, Siemers said other new businesses moving into the area include a major data center, which will be built on a former paper mill site, as well as Matalco – a supplier of aluminum billet and slab made from recycled aluminum.

This “slow but steady” economic growth, Siemers said, has helped Paper City Savings Bank generate more than $100 million in business loan activity since its commercial lending team formed roughly five years ago.

Meanwhile, he said the bank’s mortgage lending business is also keeping staff busy.

“I think what we’re seeing is most markets here in the state, as well as ours, are very inventory-constrained regarding existing housing inventory that’s available for sale,” he said. “What’s happened in response is people have decided to build new or expand an existing home with substantial remodeling. So, our local contractors – and we do business with quite a number of residential builders here in the area – are very busy right now.”

Community proud

Any business with a 102-year history, Siemers said, is bound to have a strong bond with the people and communities it serves – which is the case with Paper City.

He said the bank’s loyalty to public service is also driven by its structure as a mutual savings bank.

“As a mutual savings bank, our bank is owned by our customers,” he said. “We aren’t a shareholder-owned bank. That means there are really no conflicts between the interests of our customers and our owners. Our three pillars are our customers, our employees and our community.”

Siemers said the bank’s actions speak clearly to this mission, with its foundation supporting several charitable community organizations as well as the local United Way.

“We punch well above our weight class, if you will, in terms of our contributions here in the community,” he said. “We’re relatively small in number, with 40-plus full-time equivalents, but we’re on par with some of the largest local employers regarding community service.”

For example, Siemers said the bank recently participated in the Portage County United Way diaper drive, and its staff donated nearly 22,000 diapers, which equated to roughly a third of the United Way’s total from last year.

“So, this is something that’s just part of our DNA – giving back,” he said.

Future goals for Paper City Savings Bank, Siemers said, include a continued focus on growth.