After 60 years in business, Gilroy Pontiac, Buick and GMC has
run out of gas, leaving 26 people without a job and causing other
auto dealers and city officials to wonder, who’s next?
After 60 years in business, Gilroy Pontiac, Buick and GMC has run out of gas, leaving 26 people without a job and causing other auto dealers and city officials to wonder, who’s next?
“We’re fine” was the collective response from nearby dealerships Thursday morning, but with sales tax revenue from auto vendors down 27 percent, or $512,000, compared to last year, city officials remain skeptical.
“We were all worrying that the cascade of failure could begin, and apparently it has,” said Councilman Bob Dillon. The self-described “Pontiac man” said he bought his Pontiac Bonaville from Donald Malinoff’s dealership and successfully encouraged his gilrfriend to buy her 2009 Ford Focus from Malinoff’s other store, Gilroy Ford Lincoiln Mercury, but the grassroots patronage was no match for demands from Detroit.
More on this developing story will be posted by 5 p.m. this afternoon.
