Old Ford pics

[hemidave]

April  1961

[FiveSevenLiter]

Dominion Motors, once the largest in Canada.

[FiveSevenLiter]

Would like to find that old Foam Lake Motors building to pick.

[mustang6984]

Is Dominion out of business now? Or just been eclipsed by another as the largest?

[FiveSevenLiter]

They are a faded memory.  There were stores in Vancouver, Winnipeg and I think Toronto.  I remember the Vancouver store, was right downtown, no car lot, just building. 

[mustang6984]

UGH! Progress is inevitable I suppose...but not always pleasant.

[CobraJoe]

[djfordmanjack]

I was thinking the same ! That Dominion Vancouver corner gas station is (was) just awesome !!!
the shopping mall now is another hideous lookalike money pit. But- at least they saved the original building and even the upper window frames and all seem to have been retained. that is nice !

UGH! Progress is inevitable I suppose...but not always pleasant.

[CobraJoe]

[hemidave]

Valve job on the steps

[FiveSevenLiter]

Early Mercury dealer.

[59meteor]

Dominion Motors in Downtown Vancouver switched from a Ford to a General Motors franchise a few years before they closed their doors. I recently retired from a Toyota dealership that was the last new car dealership in the Vancouver downtown core. When 1 bedroom condos sell for over a million dollars, hard to imagine what a piece of property  the size of a car dealership would be worth. Most of the downtown gas stations have been sold in recent years, often for over 20 million each!

[mustang6984]

Imagine what that old gas pump and air station would be worth today! Oh yea!

I had a friend who's dad owned a service station in Lacey. when he retired he sold the building and land back to Texaco for a healthy chunk. (No where near the 20 million, but still...a good amount) It allowed him to not have any money worries all the way up to his death some 35 years later...at 92+.
I guess the real money in owning one of those places is not in the business...but in the sale of the dirt it sits on.
As for gas stations inside cities...if you run out of gas within the city limits of most cities...you are in deep doo-doo. Even downtown Olympia WA doesn't have any gas stations within the downtown core anymore. And you could put the entire downtown core of Olympia inside Vancouver B.C. and not even notice it. I ALWAYS make sure I have at least 1/2 - 3/4 of a tank before venturing into any major city or even medium size one if I have never been in them before.

[rmk57]

  Vancouver city council has a disdain for anything with four wheels and has made it their number one priority to discourage cars in the city. Everything from shutting down lanes to make room for bicycles to removing a lot street parking. I have a feeling once this CV-19 thing is over with city council being broke from not collecting taxes will bring in vehicle pricing if you want to park or drive in the city. I think it's time for a move out of this mess.

[mustang6984]

Sounds a lot like Seattle. they have been doing the same thing for several years...and discussing the pay to park thing being expanded to neighborhoods.
Two weeks ago I saw an article that they have now created a car free zone in the city where the ONLY cars allowed will be those of residents, and they are being encouraged (read shamed into) getting rid of them. Delivery trucks and such will be allowed as well.

And thus...you will see why I am leaving the state and moving to Branson. We even considered moving to Calgary at one time...but decided not to. I am so done with the leftist socialism garbage.

Okay...off the box now before Rich kicks it out from under me!