SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : 2 Car Dealerships to Adjoin Price Club

Two new car showrooms will soon be housed next to the Price Club, including a Ford dealership that will move from San Clemente.

The City Council paved the way for the dealerships last week when it unanimously approved a zoning change for the Price Club property.

Ben Weseloh, owner of Hacienda Ford in San Clemente, told the council that he would move his dealership to the Price Club’s now-abandoned home furnishings center.

The second dealership is still undetermined.

Council members asked that some changes be made in parking plans and that landscaping be installed between the car lots and an adjacent mobile home park, but all agreed that the dealerships would be a boon to San Juan Capistrano.

“I think this is an imaginative use of a difficult site, and it brings an important tax base to the city,” Councilman Gary L. Hausdorfer said.

Before the vote, two council members expressed surprise and some concern that two dealerships were planned for the center.

Initially, the proposal called for one dealership, noted council members Carolyn Nash and Jeff Vasquez.

“Now it’s going to be two,” Vasquez said. “The impact of the number of cars will be much more intense.”

The proposal calls for the former furnishings building to be split in half to house the two dealerships.

Before the dealerships can open, final plans for the building and the outdoor parking areas must be approved by San Juan Capistrano’s design review commission.