Sunset Chevrolet and Sumner Neighbors At Odds

Sumner's Sunset Chevrolet is a thriving business, but what is economic good news for the local dealership has become a sticking point for some of its neighbors.

The Tacoma News Tribune reports that four property owners adjacent to Sunset were sent letters last month in an effort to convince them to sell their homes to Sunset. The dealership is looking to expand its physical size, but the owners aren't budging. 

“You will be tens of thousands of dollars ahead of your situation … by simply working with us. Or, (unfortunately) you can watch us expand around you … as your home value plummets to residential buyers,” the News Tribune quotes the letter.

Neighbors blame Sunset and some blame the city - particularly for a 2011 City Council decision that allows for the dealership to expand without going through public process, said the News Tribune.

But the dealership, with its long history of support for the local community, has growing pains of its own. Other dealerships working with the volume that Sunset has typically live on about 10 acres, said the News Tribune. Sunset sits on three acres.

The dealership tells the News Tribune there aren't a lot of options to move to in Sumner, at the suggestion of upset neighbors. Patch reader Terry Deahl has this suggestion. Do you agree?  

Online: Neighbors of Sunset Chevrolet working to stave off Sumner dealership's plans for expansion (The Tacoma News Tribune)