Ferman Automotive Group hopes to put a Pontiac, Buick and GMC dealership on 12 acres along State Road 54, state records show.
By JAMES THORNER
Published June 3, 2004
LAND O'LAKES - Ferman Automotive Group has snagged a site on State Road 54 in Land O'Lakes to build a Pontiac, Buick and GMC dealership.
It would be the 14th dealership in west-central Florida for the family-owned company founded during the birth of the automobile industry in 1895.
For Land O'Lakes, it would be the first dealership in a fast-growing suburb served by nothing larger than smallish used car lots.
Ferman's proposed site is 11/2 miles west of Interstate 75 along State Road 54 on 12 acres covered in weeds and oak trees west of Oak Grove Boulevard.
The dealership would front two established neighborhoods: Oak Grove and Turtle Lakes. Trees and shrubs would buffer the houses from the automotive bustle.
Only one Oak Grove street, Denali Court, bumps against the Ferman site. Though no one appears to live there yet, the street is lined with partly built houses and lots marked with "sold" signs.
Ferman wouldn't comment on the size of the dealership or the opening date. Information about the company's Land O'Lakes' plans came from documents filed with state regulators.
The company sells a variety of makes that includes Chevrolet, Acura, BMW, Chrysler, Nissan, Jeep and Mazda. Land O'Lakes represents Ferman's attempt to branch into selling Pontiac, Buick and GMC.
"I wouldn't have anything to say today," company marketing director Frank North said Wednesday. "Nothing whatsoever."
Still, Ferman has set its sights on central Pasco County since at least last year, when it formed a subsidiary called Ferman on 54 Inc.
A legal challenge from several competitors, including James Rivard Pontiac-GMC in Brandon and Century Buick in Tampa, temporarily stymied plans. A Tallahassee judge dismissed the case last week.
The intervention by competing dealers was no mystery: Ferman would compete for the same New Tampa/central Pasco customers. Average household income in the expanding Tampa bedroom communities is about $70,000.
Such interventions are common. Witness the case of Buddy Foster Chevrolet, trying to move from Zephyrhills to State Road 56 in Wesley Chapel.
He wants to do so over the objections of two Chevy dealers: Gordon Stewart on Dale Mabry Highway and Roger Whitley on N Florida Avenue. A trial instigated by Stewart and Whitley is scheduled for July.
Most of Ferman's 13 dealerships blanket the Tampa Bay area. They include sales and service centers in New Port Richey, as well as Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.
Ferman also is the regional franchise holder for Harley-Davidson motorcycles and is scouting potential central Pasco locations.
"We're the largest and oldest family-owned automotive group on Florida's west coast, and maybe in all of Florida," North said.
- James Thorner covers growth and development in Pasco County. He can be reached in central Pasco at 813 909-4613 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4613. His e-mail address is thorner@sptimes.com
