NewAlliance Refugees Finding Safe Harbor at Rockville Bank

Rockville Bank President and Chief Executive Officer William H. W. Crawford IV on Monday announced that he has recruited several veterans from the old NewAlliance Bank to expand Rockville's commercial division.

Many of them have had a local presence over the years.

NewAlliance has been absorbed into the First Niagara system.

Robert Landfear has joined Rockville Bank as vice president, commercial banking officer. He has 17 years of industry experience and 11 years in the Hartford County market. Landfear held a similar position at NewAlliance's Manchester office. Landfear will report to Robert Davidson, Rockville Bank's vice president and team leader for Eastern Connecticut.

Michael Kelleher has joined Rockville Bank as vice president, commercial banking officer. Crawford said he has more than 20 years of commercial banking experience in Connecticut. He held a similar position at NewAlliance's Manchester office. He is a member and former Director of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce and a former Director of the Manchester police activities organization. Kelleher will also report to Davidson, Crawford said.

Tom Reid has been named senior vice president, head of the commercial real estate group for Rockville Bank. Crawford said he will report to Mark Kucia, Rockville Bank’s executive vice president and the head of its commercial banking division. Reid has 36 years of industry experience in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states and has headed up commercial real estate lending groups for banks since 1989. Reid had run NewAlliance's commercial real estate group since 2003.

Joseph Tartaglia has joined Rockville Banok as vice president and head of the cash management group. He will report Kucia, Crawford said. He ran NewAlliance's cash management  division. Tartaglia has 20 years of industry experience, all in Connecticut, Crawford said.

Kristine Carlson-Koehler has joined Rockville Bank as assistant vice president, treasury services and cash management officer. She has 24 years of industry experience and was a cash management team leader at NewAlliance's Manchester. She lives in Mansfield Center and is currently a member of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce.

In July, Rockville Bank unveiled a New Haven County commercial banking office located in Hamden. It is overseen by Stephen Villecco. Villecco formerly supervised commercial and industrial banking for NewAlliance Bank. That team includes Ray Kostka, vice president, senior commercial banking officer, who also joined Rockville Bank from NewAlliance, and Matt Proto, vice president, senior commercial banking officer, who joined Rockville Bank from the Bank of Southern Connecticut.

"We are thrilled to add such a talented and dedicated group of Connecticut-based commercial banking professionals to the Rockville team. As a group, these eight bankers have 192 years of experience serving business customers in Connecticut and New England," Kucia said. "As we expand in Connecticut, we want to become the employer of choice for the best banking talent in Connecticut."

Rockville Bank has 22 branches in Tolland, Hartford and New London counties.