“It is because of you,” Greg Balasco, owner of Lakeland Ford said during the presentation, “that we have been able to achieve this great honor. I cannot thank everyone enough for their hard work and dedication to making Lakeland Ford what is has become today.” Mr. Balasco addressed the crowd of employees, customers and special guests after Rick Brisson, the Regional Manger for Ford Motor Company presented the award. “It really is,” Mr. Balasco continued, “because of all of you that we have been able to achieve this honor and your hard work that continues to help build on our past successes. This really is an award for all of our staff and customers.”
Lakeland Ford (part of the Lakeland Automall family of brands) employs over 250 people and currently represents Ford, Hyundai, Genesis and ROUSH branded products. Lakeland Ford, the cornerstone dealership in Lakeland has been serving the community since 1949 and has moved several times over the past 69 years. The original location on Main Street was moved to Lake Mirror in the 1950’s where it remained until the 1970’s when it moved to it’s current location on W. Memorial Blvd.
From what we have been able to find through local archives, Robert Waters owned Lakeland Ford in the 1950’s through 1982 when Jim Adams purchased the dealership and changed the name to Jim Adams Ford. In 1996, Bill Mutz purchased the landmark Ford Dealership and changed the name back to Lakeland Ford which it still remains to this day.
Thank you Lakeland and all of our surrounding communities for helping us achieve this great honor. We will continue to work to improve and provide the highest quality service, sales and parts of all of our community. If we can do anything, don’t hesitate to ask… we’re here to help!