FALMOUTH, MA - In January 2010, seemingly without much public notice and information after the fact, Harbor Chevrolet at 171 Worcester Court cleared its lots, posted closed signs on the showroom windows, and locked the doors. According to GM and local sources, the long-time Upper Cape dealership is no longer in the dealer network. A redirect to GM from the dealership’s web address confirms the business closure. An affiliated enterprise, Seaside Auto Body was also closed along with the dealership.
Prior to the Harbor Chevrolet closing, Falmouth Ford on Dillingham Avenue was shuttered in 2007. This most recent closing, however, makes the nearby O’Hara Jeep Dodge Chrysler the only new car dealership still operating in Falmouth, MA.
Few are more aware of this fact than Rich Duffy. He’s an ASE Certified Technician and founder-owner of Falmouth Motor Car, a growing business with state-of-the-art automotive service centers located in Falmouth and Cataumet, and a recently added modern quick oil change facility on Route 28 in West Yarmouth, MA.
“At the time I started in business in the early 1980′s, there were seven new automobile dealerships located in Falmouth. Today there’s just one remaining,” Mr. Duffy noted. “It all shows how much this industry has changed and will likely continue to change, especially for the consumer.” Going forward, Falmouth Motor Car’s mission is clear: make that change a reliable and high quality experience for local consumers who are now left with fewer comparable service and repair options.
Harbor Chevrolet has deep roots in Falmouth and has served generations of loyal GM customers as either Clauson Chevrolet Oldsmobile and Tom Flurkey Chevrolet Oldsmobile GEO.
Originally occupying the premises under a lease, Flurkey eventually acquired the property under a foreclosure deed from Plymouth Savings Bank in 1994. A decade later, the current owners A&B Brown Real Estate LLC bought the property from the Flurkey’s and continued operating the GM dealership. The 2004 sale included the properties located at 171 Worcester Court (1.364 acre lot with a 10,440+/- SF dealership facility) and the adjacent property at 179 Worcester Court consisting of Seaside Auto Body (.586 acre lot with a 5,000+/- SF automotive facility). The recorded deed filed in June 2004 indicated a purchase price of $1,750,000 for both properties.
A recap of the seven dealerships operating Falmouth in the early 1980′s:
1. Falmouth Toyota- East Falmouth Hwy., near St Anthony’s Church. In the late 1980′s, Tom Murphy relocated Falmouth Toyota to a newly built facility on MacArthur Blvd. in Bourne. The former site was later redeveloped with a car wash.
2. Clauson Chevrolet Oldsmobile – Worcester Court; previously at 662 Main Street.
3. Falmouth Ford – dealership closed in 2007 and the property was sold in 2008. Click for related story.
4. VW/Mazda – currently O’Hara Jeep Dodge Chrysler at 50 Spring Bars Road.
5. Battles Buick- formerly on Depot St.; the main Battles dealership was relocated to the former Bridge VW facility on MacArthur Blvd. in Bourne.
6. Falmouth Nissan - currently the Cape & Islands Tire store at 735 Teaticket Hwy., East Falmouth, MA
7. Falmouth Dodge – 662 Main Street; in about 2003 the site was redeveloped with a two story brick bank (currently Mutual Bank; previously Security Federal Savings Bank.)
On January 30, 2009 Hess Corporation acquired 11 Christy’s of Cape Cod gasoline-convenience stores. The sale evidently included the outright purchase of six properties and lease assumptions on the remaining five facilities. The stores are located in Dennisport, East Falmouth, Hyannis (3), Osterville, Sandwich, South Orleans, South Yarmouth (2) and West Yarmouth.
