DELAND – Two local automobile dealers here have recently been on the move, one permanently and one temporarily, with the same goal of modernizing and raising the profile of their dealerships.
About a month ago, Coggin DeLand Honda relocated to its new facility at 2677 N. Volusia Ave. in Orange City after a year of construction. The location is next to the State Road 472/Volusia Avenue interchange. For 22 years, the dealership was based two miles to the north at 1580 S. Woodland Blvd. in DeLand.
The Honda site was not vacant long. A few days after Coggin DeLand Honda moved out, DeLand Toyota Scion leased it and moved in, temporarily relocating its operations 0.2 miles from its home at 1701 S. Woodland Blvd.
Toyota’s move will allow the complete demolition and rebuilding of the dealership, which has been renamed Parks Toyota of DeLand.
“We need to keep up with the times, upgrade and modernize with the new Toyota look and put in all the technology that the business uses today. It’s better to rebuild than retrofit,” said Kenneth Hanley, general manager of Parks Toyota of DeLand. “We thought of moving into trailers onsite, but it’s easier this way.”
Demolition is scheduled to begin any day on the three existing buildings at Parks Toyota of DeLand. The buildings total about 20,000 square feet.
One new facility totaling about 38,000 square feet will be constructed. The new-vehicle showroom will be toward the front of the lot, along the highway. The service center will be toward the rear of the property that is on the southeast corner of Taylor Road.
“Right now we have room in the showroom for one compact vehicle. When the new building is done, we’ll have room for up to six,” Hanley said. “The service center is expanding from 14 bays to 20.”
Demolition and clean up are expected to take 30 days with construction to follow. The facility is expected to reopen in late May.
The $6 million project is also expected to increase the number of jobs at Parks Toyota of DeLand from 60 to about 75, Hanley said. The center will need added service, sales and management employees.
The dealership is part of Parks Motor Group, based in Tampa. Jack Parks began the company in 1975 when he purchased a Lincoln-Mercury dealership. The company now owns eight Florida franchises with dealerships in Tampa, Gainesville, Longwood, Wesley Chapel and DeLand.
Jack’s son, Randy Parks, owns the Toyota and Scion franchises in DeLand. He bought them in 1992. Randy Parks also owns Seminole Powersports in Sanford.
The name change from DeLand Toyota Scion is part of the company’s effort to brand the “Parks” corporate ownership, Hanley said. Name changes began last year at other dealerships.
Coggin DeLand Honda is part of the Asbury Automotive Group, based in Duluth, Ga. The group owns 79 dealerships from New Jersey to Florida and across to Texas, including the Coggin Automotive Group and Courtesy Autogroup, both in Florida.
The new Coggin DeLand Honda dealership totals about 40,000 square feet of showroom and service center. That’s much bigger than the 15,184 square feet it left behind.
It’s located next to Coggin DeLand Ford and Lincoln dealerships on a 19-acre tract.
“The old site was small and the Honda business had outgrown it,” said George Karolis, vice president of corporate development and real estate for Asbury Automotive Group. “We had a lot of property at the Ford site and we like for our dealers to be closer together. It’s more efficient and creates synergy.”
The move to a larger facility also added six jobs, increasing the number of employee to 55, Karolis said.
He also noted that the new facility’s design is not the typical Honda standard, but includes large blue glass plates along the front of the showroom, which create a special nighttime affect with the internal lights.
The old Honda site is listed for sale with SRS Real Estate Partners in Orlando for $3 million.