FULLERTON : City Study Weighs Dealer Expansion

The City Council has agreed to hire a consultant to study the cost of financing an expansion of a Toyota dealer’s lot on Harbor Boulevard.

Council members voted 4 to 1 last week to spend $15,000 for legal fees, staff expenses and an appraiser who will determine the value of property on Elm Avenue just north of the dealership.

Fairway Toyota, 770 S. Harbor Blvd., plans to expand its display area and service bays in an effort to increase sales. City officials say that business already has gone up, in part because of the closure of a nearby Toyota dealership in Anaheim.

Some council members said that without an expansion, the city would risk losing the dealership, which generates about $175,000 a year in sales tax revenue.

Under the agreement with the city Redevelopment Agency, Fairway Toyota will pay the market value of the land based on the appraisal.

Mayor Chris Norby voted against the expenditure because of plans to use part of Elm Avenue for the dealership’s expansion. He said the move could be unsettling to residents on the street, which would have to be turned into a cul-de-sac.