News
New Car Dealership To Open In Meigs County
By: Sarah Hawley | Athens Messenger staff reporter
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Local car dealer Mark Porter is expanding his business, with plans to open a new-28,000 square foot dealership in the Rocksprings area of Meigs County.
Porter currently owns a dealership in Pomeroy selling both new and used vehicles and a used car superstore in Athens. The new dealership would replace the one currently in Pomeroy.
Work on the property for the new dealership began approximately three weeks ago with the clearing of timber from the property. The new site is located just up to the hill from Meigs High School and the Rio Grande Meigs Center near the intersection of Route 33 and Route 7.
“It will be easy access from (Route) 33; 20 minutes from Athens; 20 minutes from Gallipolis; 20 minutes from Ravenswood,” said Porter.
As the region’s GM new vehicle dealership Porter said he has a responsibility to serve many counties in the area including Meigs, Athens, and Gallia in Ohio and Mason and Jackson in West Virginia. This new location will allow him to better serve all of the areas.
The new dealership will double the size of the service area with 19 service bays. There will also be space for the dealership to have 500 vehicles in stock at the one location. Currently, the Pomeroy location has approximately 300 new vehicles.
The expanded dealership will also help local companies and businesses through the construction process.
“We are trying to keep it all local,” said Porter, adding that about 90 percent of the project will be local with local contractors and materials purchased locally. The only things likely to be coming from out of the area are items from GM which are the same nationwide.
Construction will be completed by Hoon Inc. of Athens, with other local companies also working on the project.
The opening of the new dealership in Meigs County will not have an impact on the Athens location said Porter.
Renovation work is also being planned for the Athens location following the completion of the work in Meigs County now that flood insurance issues have been resolved said Porter.
A formal groundbreaking will take place in the coming weeks, with the dealership expected to open June 1, 2015. The project is expected to cost approximately $4.5 million.