Viking Dodge - Lights Out?

Topics:  Viking Dodge

Gus Philpott
Woodstock Advocate
January 8, 2009

When I drove past Viking Dodge at 7:00PM yesterday, the sales lot and showroom lights were out. Is there more meaning to this than just an energy conservation step?

If Viking Dodge has bitten the dust, this is a bad sign for Crystal Lake. The sales tax revenues will be lost, even though they must have declined seriously during the recent months.

If Viking Dodge closes, many jobs will go down the drain; salesmen, managers, clerical, parts, repair and body shop employees will all be looking for new jobs. And there will be few jobs from which to pick.

Viking Dodge has taken a few hits from me over the past year, as I weighed in on the conflict between Wayne Beto and Viking Dodge. The loss of a major dealership in Crystal Lake is not the solution anyone was looking for.

And Wayne's case in McHenry County court system? The trial was set for February 2. Rumor has it that an earlier date is now on the docket. On Wednesday, January 14, the judge will hear a Motion to Dismiss from Viking Dodge. No doubt that the good judge will grant the Motion, and the 2-1/2 year legal battle against Wayne will end.

Yesterday I attempted to explain the ramifications of the deepening recession to a young man here in Woodstock. If there is anyone who doesn't think it's darned serious, he'd better think again. The auto industry affects a huge number of Americans, not just those on the assembly lines or in the glass palaces in Detroit.

The ripple effect of our extremely-serious economic problems will affect every one of us.