Exhibit
99.1
 FOR
      IMMEDIATE RELEASE
              CONTACT:
              Dianne
      M. GrenzFirst
      Senior Vice PresidentDirector
      of Marketing,Public
      & Shareholder RelationsValley
      National Bancorp973-305-4005Anthony
      M. Bruno, Jr.Chairman,
      President &CEOGreater
      Community Bancorp973-942-1111
 
 
 VALLEY
NATIONAL BANCORP RECEIVES
 GREATER
COMMUNITY BANCORP SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL
 
 WAYNE, N.J. and TOTOWA, N.J. – June 19, 2008 –Valley National Bancorp (NYSE:VLY) (“Valley”) and Greater Community
Bancorp (NASDAQ:GFLS) (“Greater Community”) jointly announced today that all
regulatory and shareholder approvals necessary to complete the previously
announced merger of Greater Community with and into Valley have been
received.
 
 It is
expected that the merger between Valley and Greater Community will take place on
July 1, 2008.
 
 Valley is
a regional bank holding company with over $12 billion in assets, headquartered
in Wayne, New Jersey. Its principal subsidiary, Valley National Bank, currently
operates 177 branches in 123 communities serving 14 counties throughout northern
and central New Jersey, Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.
 
 For more
information about Valley National Bank and its products and services, please
visit www.valleynationalbank.com
or call Customer Service 24/7 at 1-800-522-4100.
 
 Greater
Community is a bank holding company with approximately $967 million in assets.
Its commercial banking subsidiary, Greater Community Bank, has 16 full-service
branch offices located in Bergen, Morris, and Passaic
Counties.  Pursuant to the merger agreement, Greater Community Bank
will be merged with and into Valley National Bank.
  #  #  #
 
 Cautionary
Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
  The
foregoing contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Such statements are not
historical facts and include expressions about management's confidence and
strategies and management's expectations about acquisitions, relationships and
opportunities.  These statements may be identified by such
forward-looking terminology as “expect” or similar statements or
variations.   Such forward-looking statements involve certain
risks and uncertainties.  Actual results may differ materially from
such forward-looking statements. Valley and Greater Community assume no
obligation for updating any such forward-looking statement at any
time.  Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from
those contemplated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not
limited to, the following: failure to satisfy conditions to the merger on the
proposed terms and within the proposed timeframes; the inability to realize
expected cost savings and synergies from the merger of Greater Community with
Valley in the amounts or in the timeframe anticipated; changes in the estimate
of non-recurring charges; costs or difficulties relating to integration matters
might be greater than expected; material adverse changes in Valley’s or Greater
Community’s operations or earnings; the inability to retain Greater Community’s
customers and employees; or a decline in the economy in Valley’s primary market
areas, mainly in New Jersey and New York.