Waltham's Old Friendly's Building To Become Bank

WALTHAM, MA — The old Friendly's restaurant on Lexington Street is being torn down. Chase Bank is building a branch there.

"Our goal is to open by year end," said Chase Bank spokesperson Briana Curran.

The property straddles the border of Lexington, so about half of the new building will be in Waltham the other half in Lexington, according to City Councilor Caren Dunn.

The Friendly's closed in March 2019. It was one of about two dozen closures across the Northeast and three in the Commonwealth, including one in Framingham and in Holden.

In June 2020 the historical commission found the building not historically significant. In July the city's conservation commission signed off on a development prospectus for a bank with a drive thru in the spot.

The company notified federal regulators as far back as 2019 that it wanted to open a branch here as, part of an ongoing push to have 50 retail branches in Greater Boston, according to the Boston Business Journal.