Ithacating in Cornell Heights

The small addition the Maguire Family of Dealerships is putting on their Fiat/Chrysler location looks to be nearly complete from the outside. The aluminum panels are up, the new east wing is fully glazed and new signage has been posted, both on the building and the stand alone podium signage near Route 13. The parking lot and display have been reconfigured, and the entry drive has been modified. It looks like the only thing left is landscaping and paving by the front of the building. Welliver will be wrapped up within a few weeks, and Maguire’s 2-story, 1,836 SF addition will be done. More info on the project can be found here.

So this small project slipped under the radar. Back in April 2015, it was mentioned in a weekly news roundup that the Maguires were planning a 1,836 SF addition to their Fiat/Chrysler dealership on 13. Originally, the $360,000 project was slated to build out from September to December of 2015; and when things didn’t start, the assumption was things weren’t moving forward given their Waterfront plans, and that was that.

Well, the expansion is moving forward, albeit later than originally anticipated. The expansion consists of a 1-story, 1,017 SF entry area and showroom space for the Fiat dealership, and a 2-story, 836 SF addition for sales manager offices and a second-floor lunch room. Along with the building expansion, the parking and display lots are being reconfigured for an additional 20 display spaces, a revised entry drive, new landscaping, walkways and a bike rack. The project needed signage and front yard setback zoning variances, which were granted last summer.

At this point, the addition has been framed and sheathed, some with plywood/Tyvek and some with gypsum, which probably has to do with fire ratings. Windows have been fitted in some parts of the additions, while the future doors are currently occupied by plywood placeholders. The housewrap section will eventually be covered up with dark red aluminum panels and a large FIAT logo, while the rest of the addition will use grey panels.

Welliver is the general contractor for the project, and Schickel Architecture is in charge of design.

Personal aside, I had an uncle who was a Chrysler factory foreman back in the day, so there is a certain fondness attached to the old Pentastar logo. But the many mechanics in my family still have a strong aversion to Fiats, whose build quality in the ’70s and ’80s was less than par.