AUSTINTOWN Greenwood plans Hummer dealership

Hummer is coming out with at least two new vehicles, the H3 and the H2.
THE VINDICATOR
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
AUSTINTOWN -- Local car dealer Greg Greenwood is preparing to break ground for his newest dealership -- Greenwood Hummer.
A lot next to Greenwood Chevrolet, 4695 Mahoning Ave., is being cleared for a new building. A trailer park used to be on the lot.
Greenwood has been selling the boxy sport-utility vehicles out of its Chevrolet dealership since last year, when General Motors awarded it a Hummer franchise.
GM wants all Hummer dealerships to be in stand-alone buildings by March 31, 2005, said Norm Flick, Greenwood's Hummer brand manager.
Ground probably will be broken next spring for the planned 9,000-square-foot Austintown dealership, he said. He wasn't sure when the building will be completed.
Michael Kurilla, township zoning inspector, said the lot is zoned for business use, but Greenwood needs a conditional use permit to build a car dealership. The township board of zoning appeals will consider Greenwood's request once building plans are completed.
Those plans are still being worked on by Hummer and GM, Flick said.
The dealership will be relatively small because it will not have its own service and parts departments, Flick said. It will rely on Greenwood Chevrolet for those services. The showroom probably will have room for three vehicles, he said.
One of six in Ohio
Flick said Hummer awarded only six franchises in Ohio. Greenwood's territory includes eastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania and part of West Virginia.
He said GM has awarded about 160 franchises and wants to have 200 eventually as it builds Hummer into a national brand. GM bought the Hummer brand in 1999 from AM General of Indiana.
Flick said GM wants dealers to have their construction work completed by early 2005 in advance of the arrival of the H3, a smaller and more affordable Hummer vehicle that is due out in May 2005.
Flick said the H3 will be in the $30,000 range, but Automotive News reported that it is expected to start near $40,000.
Hummer also is adding the H2 SUT pickup truck next spring.
Hummer began with a large sport-utility vehicle called the H1, which has a base price of $106,000, and the smaller H2, with a cost of $49,000.
Mike DiGiovanni, Hummer marketing general manager, said that Hummer is considering adding another type of vehicle, which could be called the H4.
Greg Greenwood also owns Greenwood Market Motor in Boardman and Greenwood's Hubbard Chevrolet & amp; Oldsmobile. His stepbrother, Terry, owns Greenwood Chrysler Plymouth & amp; Dodge in Cortland.
shilling@vindy.com