autoevolution
 

Closed Dealerships Transformed in Yoga Studios

There’s no secret that the recession seriously struck down the auto industry. As one of the crisis measures, automakers decided to close down dealerships all over the United States. Chrysler Group LLC decided to close down 789 franchises in June, while General Motors has said it will slash 2,400 retail locations of its own by the fall of 2010.

So what happens to the empty spaces, especially considering the depressed real estate market? Associated Press notes that the once glamorous showrooms are being transformed into stores, restaurants, schools, day care centers or yoga studios.

As dealerships have huge windows in order to show their merchandise, such a building which offers plenty of natural light and usually good location could be the perfect place for starting a business.

"There's more likelihood that they're going to be kept now than there was 10 or 15 years ago," said Andrew Wolfram, an architect at Perkins + Will who sits on the San Francisco Historic Preservation Commission. "There's an overall trend toward reuse of old buildings, and there's also a sense that these particular buildings now have more value."

Owners of successful businesses are happy they chose a former showroom. Steve Xiao, manager of the Hua Xing Asia Market in Ypsilanti, Mich., transformed it into a grocery.

"We were really interested when we heard they were selling and moving somewhere else," he said. "The first year, the price was too high. When we finally bought it, it had been on the market almost two years."
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