Toyota dealer poised to move across Poway Road
The owner of the Toyota of Poway dealership and the city’s redevelopment agency are proposing a 12-year lease arrangement that will enable Toyota to move across Poway Road and occupy properties once used by two now-defunct auto dealerships.
A 200-page document outlining the terms and conditions of the deal will be before the City Council when it meets on Tuesday, Aug. 17.
A staff report released Thursday says the Toyota dealer will essentially occupy the building that once housed a Chrysler dealership, rent-free for 12 years, providing the business generates $3 million in new net sales tax to the city over the course of the lease. The City Council last month agreed to buy the lot from Chrysler’s real estate division for $2.8 million, plus another $200,000 in related fees.
Vincent Castro, who has owned Toyota of Poway since late 2008, plans to close escrow by the end of the month to purchase the two lots immediately to the west of the old Chrysler property from a private property owner. The properties include the former Dodge/Jeep dealership and a recently relocated auto repair business.
Castro said Friday his plans call for his Toyota showroom to be housed in the renovated Dodge/Jeep building and for his Scion showroom and used car business to be located on the city-owned land. A Toyota service center will be housed in the former auto repair building, Castro said.
If everything goes as planned, Castro said he hopes to pull building permits in four to six months. At this early point, he is anticipating moving the dealership across the road in 15 to 18 months.
For Castro, the move means better visibility for his business. While the size of his new dealership will be about the same, having it at the corner of Poway and Midland roads should triple the number of cars that go by, he said.
The city staff report estimates that Castro will put $13.5 million into renovating the properties, a figure that he would not confirm Friday.
Meanwhile, the Lowe’s home improvement chain has submitted plans to build a new store on 12 acres now occupied by the Toyota dealership and a former Chevrolet dealership that is being used as an auto body shop.
According to the staff report, “Lowe’s is currently in the process of buying both parcels and plans to build a new store on the site which would generate 170 local jobs and invest $30 million in site development.”
The Lowe’s application projects a January 2012 store opening, assuming city approval. The project will require a public hearing and City Council approval. It may or may not require an environmental impact report, depending on the outcome of a city staff review of submitted documents.
Short URL: http://www.pomeradonews.com/?p=7478
Posted by 
