We like to think that all of the effort going into Lakeland Ford will eventually pay off – it’s an investment we’ve spent a great deal of time, money and consideration getting together. We know its looked like a war-zone at Lakeland Ford, even though we’ve been open at the top of the hill since we started the demolition in June. Considering it took a year and a half to demolish and rebuild Lakeland Hyundai (okay… 2 years), it is no surprise that Lakeland Ford has run into some snags along the way. Just ask Lakeland Automall owner Greg Balasco. “It’s been a challenge running a business while under construction. Some people think we’re closed, and that isn’t the case.”
“Since Lakeland Hyundai opened in June 2014, we’ve received a great deal of positive feedback about the building.” Mr. Balasco continued, “We want to generate the same kind of customer feedback about Lakeland Ford when we’re closer to the grand opening.” When questioned further about a Lakeland Ford Grand Opening, Mr. Balasco would only say “Sometime in early 2015.”
We’ve seen the changes take place over the past 5 months and a slowdown after initial construction started due to what looked like major excavation in the front of the Ford building. Since that time, support beams and steel gerters have been hoisted into place and the actual front structural facade has been erected. If you look closely into the building you can see the steel framing in place for back offices and customer waiting areas. Some of the customers who have been to Lakeland Ford for service realized they had to be temporarily routed to Lakeland Hyundai service department because the construction on Lakeland Ford also involved the service drive. The new Lakeland Ford QuickLane® will have 31 service bays, while the Lakeland Automall Body Shop and Collision Center has already opened.
