Balise opens area's largest Ford truck service facility
Date: 5/30/2013
By Chris Maza
chrism@thereminder.comWILBRAHAM — Executives and public officials gathered on May 23 to mark the grand opening of the newly refurbished Balise Ford of Wilbraham and celebrate what all involved called a great collaboration between town and business.
The new 27,000 square foot facility that replaced the old building at 1979 Boston Road, which was undersized by industry standards, officially opened on May 25. Among the new features are an updated showroom and lounge, complete with a flat screen television and wireless Internet capabilities, and an expanded service area that includes 16 bays and the area's largest Ford truck service facility, as well as the new Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center.
"We're really excited. It's been a long time coming," Jeb Balise, president of Balise Motor Sales, said. "Just because of the credit crunch and everything happening in the auto industry, this building got delayed, so we're really excited to be able to open the new Ford dealership this weekend."
Planning Board Chair Richard Butler lauded the economic development for the town, stating, "$5 million investments don't come along every day."
With the expansion of the building, Balise said the company would be able to add positions and provided additional opportunities to skilled autoworkers in the area.
"Eventually it could be as many as 35 jobs, but it'll be 20 incremental jobs in the next 30 to 60 days for sure," he said. "Some of them have already been hired."
Balise, as well as members of the Planning Board and Board of Selectmen, marveled at the quick turnaround in the construction of the facility. The store opened roughly eight months after the first shovels of dirt were tossed at a groundbreaking ceremony in October 2012.
Butler added that the success and speed of this project could help spur additional development the town is seeking in order to boost its tax base.
"This is the best testimony I could think of for development out here," he said. "They did it absolutely right. They completed this project in eight months, and that's absolutely unheard of. If they were in any other town, they would still be talking about the issues in eight months."
Balise credited the town with aiding the company in getting through those issues with a minimum amount of stress or delay.
"The challenge is always working with the town to come up with something that works and the town of Wilbraham was just wonderful to work with. They actually helped us keep it on the fast track," he said.
Likewise, Butler said Balise Motor Sales was extremely cognizant of what needed to be done not only in terms of keeping the project legal under the town's bylaws, but something abutters could live with as well.
"The first night they came in [before the Planning Board], they had done their homework, everything was laid out," he said.
The project was not without its hurdles, which included the development of a plan for an expanded entrance to the facilities, concerns regarding proximity to wetlands, vehicle storage plans and fencing for abutters, but all were quickly addressed with satisfactory results, Butler added.
He said he foresaw additional "contemporaries" joining Balise Ford in commercial district that spans the Boston Road/Route 20 corridor. The addition of tax revenue through further development in that area is crucial to the town's success, he added.
"Residential is really flat and in the commercial district there are still opportunities on Boston Road," he said. "When you drive into Wilbraham from Springfield, the first things you see are Friendly's and then you go by this beautiful, big dealership and then you're going to see that there are opportunities further down. We need commercial. Residential isn't going to cut it anymore."
Board of Selectmen Chair Robert Boilard explained that because of the expanded footprint of the building, the town would see a small increase in tax revenue.
"This building here will hit new growth, which will help kick off our next year's budget," he said. "Any new taxes certainly are going to help the town."
Boilard went on to say that while Wilbraham has a single tax rate, commercial tax dollars are crucial and can stretch a bit farther than residential taxes.
"Places like this don't take from the services. They don't send kids to the schools and they require very little from the town itself in terms of monetary service," he said. "This whole strip of Boston Road, if developed and when developed, will definitely help the town's operational budget."
Balise added, "Hopefully the taxes that we generate here are going to help the town with all the other new projects they want from police stations and senior centers to things that just make the community a better place to live."
