BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT:

BURBANK — A day after General Motors filed for bankruptcy, confidence was booming at Community Chevrolet on West Olive Avenue.

The 50-year-old dealership received a notice early Tuesday that, despite plans from the troubled Detroit automaker to terminate thousands of dealer contracts nationwide, GM plans to renew its contract as the city’s lone new-car outlet, said General Sales Manager Roger Cowan.

Sales at the site have slumped by more than 30% over the last year, matching the drop in consumer interest seen at other regional auto dealerships. In addition, the store has cut about 10% of its staff during the economic downturn, Cowan said. But federal backing for GM, which owns Chevrolet, combined with a recent rebound in car sales, might bode well for the store, Cowan said.

Community Chevrolet is selling Camaros as fast as it’s receiving them, he said. The store sold all five 2010 Camaro models it received after the car’s release last month and has presold five of the 15 cars expected to arrive at the dealership in June. All of its Malibu hybrids are also sold out and upcoming new releases will likely stimulate further sales, Cowan said.

“It’s looking very, very positive,” he said.

Recent gains aside, the dealership will still have to battle the long-held public perception that American cars are inferior to their foreign counterparts, even if recent GM developments show the promise of change, said Jack Kyser, founding economist of the Kyser Center for Economic Research.

“They are building good quality cars,” Kyser said. “Its just that they have this long history of indifferently designed cars and poor quality to overcome.”

President Obama has openly criticized GM and Chrysler for making “bad business decisions” that have put them behind their competitors. At least one customer at Community Chevrolet on Tuesday agreed.

GM appeared to be slow in developing the fuel-efficient cars that consumers want, North Hollywood resident Allison Carroll said.

“It seems like they jumped on the bandwagon a little bit late,” Carroll said. “I think that hurts a business when you don’t adapt.”

Cowan hoped that that reputation would change as Chevrolet continues to release fuel-efficient models like the Chevy Volt, an extended-range electric car planned for a 2010 launch.

Sales representatives are also hoping to draw more customers with a set of recession-influenced financing offers that have been adopted my most automotive brands, including a program that promises to help make car payments for customers who lose their jobs.

Overall, the bankruptcy has not changed the dealership’s business operations, except to offer customers more confidence, Cowan said.

“In all fairness, the public has been worried about the bankruptcy, and they have been wondering if we’re still going to be here,” he said, “and I’ve been happy to say to them, ‘Yes we are.’”