PORT TOWNSEND — For the second time in a year, Port Townsend has a car dealership.
And for a second time, the dealership is temporary.
Beginning today, the Ruddell Auto Mall is taking over the old Courtesy Ford dealership property on state Highway 19 south of town, bringing in 100 new and used cars as a way to benefit both local charities and the county’s tax base, said Ruddell sales manager Steve Uvila.
The Port Angeles dealership will contribute $50 from each car sold to United Good Neighbors, while every sale will generate a 9 percent sales tax to local government, Uvila noted.
When the dealership held a sale it August, it sold fewer than 20 of the cars on hand, but this translated into $1,000 for UGN and $30,000 for the county’s tax coffers, Uvila said.
The dealership will keep bringing in cars as others are sold to keep the lot full, he said.
The temporary dealership at the junction of state Highways 19 and 20 will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Saturday.
Courtesy Ford closed its Port Townsend dealership in 2008, and the building and lot have stood empty since then except for Ruddell’s auto sales.