Midway in Orwell will continue to sell GM products

By MARK TODD - Staff Writer - mtodd@starbeacon.com
Star Beacon

May 20, 2009 12:19 am

— ORWELL — Another local General Motors dealer has learned — albeit a little later than the rest — that it will stay in the GM family for the foreseeable future.
Midway Pontiac-Chevrolet-Buick in Orwell found out Monday it was not among the 1,100 d-ealerships GM will shed next year to improve profitability.
Most dealers learned their fate on Friday, but for some reason word didn’t reach Midway until the first of the week. “It was a long weekend,” said Jack Scott, co-owner of the family-owned business.
The delay apparently caused a little concern in the community, Scott said.
“Everybody who saw me (over the weekend) asked what was going on,” he said.
Midway joins three other area dealers — Stateline in Andover, Great Lakes Auto in Jefferson and Ashtabula Township, and Greg Sweet in Conneaut — that received a thumbs-up from GM. The auto giant did not release a list of affected dealers, leaving each store to make comment.
GM is cutting dealers based on several factors, including sales and customer service surveys. Contracts to the affected dealers will be withdrawn at the end of 2010.
Midway, which employs more than 30 people, got good marks from GM, Scott said.
“We met or exceeded specifications,” he said.
The dealership was founded by Scott’s grandfather in the 1930s, he said.