Groundbreaking is planned next week on a new Taylorsville car dealership.
The 40,000-square-foot Honda dealership, operated by Hubler Automotive Group, will be located south of Interstate 65 and east of U.S. 31.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday, with construction tentatively scheduled to be completed by late spring 2020.
The new facility will include a lot, showroom, 25 service bays and a car wash, according to a press release. The automotive group expects the new dealership will eventually create 20 to 30 new jobs.
The new dealership will replace the current Hubler Honda dealership located at 3055 Central Ave. in Columbus. The existing dealership will remain open until the new dealership is completed, company officials said.
When the proposed dealership went before the Columbus Plan Commission last fall, approval came with the stipulation that the Hubler Automotive Group follow staff recommendations in developing the property.
That includes the extension of Bear Lane further to the east, as well as the construction of Hubler Drive, which runs north-south from Bear Drive through the dealership and up to County Road 700N.
Although the Indianapolis-based dealership was founded by Franklin Hubler in 1961, it is his son — current principal owner Bradley Hubler — who has been credited with expanding the family business. The Hubler Automotive Group now has a dozen dealerships in Greensburg, Indianapolis, Greenwood, Shelbyville, Bedford, Rushville and Franklin, as well as Columbus.
It will be the owner who will decide whether to leave the current dealership at the corner of Central Avenue and National Road — or create a new dealership with a different brand of cars and trucks, general manager Corbin Eckert said.
So far, Bradley Hubler has not made that decision, Eckert said Wednesday.
Besides operating car dealerships in six Indiana counties, Hubler Automotive Group also operates a number of related businesses that include car washes and collision centers.
