Former bank building has new owner

Published 6:40 pm Friday, June 18, 2021

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Agape Health Services has purchased the former Wells Fargo property on South Market Street. The organization hasn’t officially stated what the building will be used for, but an Agape employee said on social media that it will become a corporate office.

Wells Fargo informed customers last December of its plan to close its Main Street location. The branch officially closed in March, and the building has been vacant since then.

County records show the deed for the property now belongs to Metropolitan Community Health Services, which does business as Agape Health Services. The parking lot outside of the building is also private property, which is why there are now signs in that area stating that the lot is no longer available for public parking as of June 14. The sign says anyone who violates that rule will be towed away.

Agape is a nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center that provides “direct primary and preventive medical, dental, pharmacy, and behavioral health services to the population in Eastern North Carolina on a sliding fee scale,” according to its website.

Agape already has clinics in Washington and Williamston, and it is currently expanding into Plymouth. The Washington clinic is located at 120 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, a walkable distance from the newly acquired property.

Agape has played a key role in Beaufort County’s efforts to curb the COVID-19 pandemic, serving as both a testing site and a vaccine provider.