Kerry Sawyer, the general manager of the Toyota of Puyallup, which has been operating in the area for 46 years, purchased the dealership building from the Sawyer Family Investments LLC for $10.25 million or $224 per square foot in a deal that closed April 11th.
The dealership is located at 1400 River Road, down the street from a number of other car dealerships including Market Place Auto, Chevrolet Buick GMC of Puyallup, Subaru of Puyallup, Korum Hyundai, Korum Ford-Lincoln and Sunset Trucks. The 41,905 square feet dealership was built in 2000 and sits on a 7.49 acre lot.
Sawyer, who is a second generation auto dealer, has been the president and general manager of the dealership since 1995 after she began working there under her father in the 80s and 90s. Her father, Glenn Sawyer, accepted an offer from Toyota Motor Sales to become Puyallup’s Toyota Dealer in 1970, when the maker had only four lines of vehicles, the Corolla, Corona, Hi-Lux and Land Cruiser.
In 2001, the dealership expanded to the location on River Road, not far from the original downtown Puyallup location. It was later remodeled in 2015 to include an expanded showroom with a covered, heated new vehicle delivery area, showroom displays and playrooms for kids, among others.
There are a number of Toyota dealerships around the Puget Sound region including locations in Bellevue, Seattle, Renton, Lake City, Burien, Kirkland, Edmonds, Olympia, Tacoma, Bremerton, Bellingham, Auburn and Everett as well as a few locations in Eastern Washington. The Tacoma location is one of only five other Toyota dealerships in the country that has received its 24th consecutive Toyota’s President’s Award, which it earned in 2010.
Sawyer declined to comment on the transaction when contacted.
