Poor sales and market share, and disappointing customer satisfaction results on surveys have Ford Motor Co. telling Napleton Lincoln-Mercury car dealership to shape up, a city business consultant told the city’s Finance and Budget Committee Tuesday night.
Napleton has attributed its performance to the old dealership’s condition and has turned to the city for help.
The auto dealership, 826 W. Touhy Ave., is requesting four types of financial incentives from the city, including new sidewalks, vacated alleys and 20 free parking spaces.
The fourth request, however, sent up red flags among the committee members. The auto dealership is asking for a refund on its sales taxes for each of the next 10 years or 50 percent of amounts above the level of sales tax the dealership paid in 1994.
“This is an opportunity to set a precedent here we might not want to make,” said 7th Ward Ald. Paul Hansen.
The committee took no action Tuesday night.
