West Covina auto dealership owner offers employment to those recently laid off

After employees of a controversial auto dealership developer were laid off last month, the owner of a neighboring car dealership says he is prepared to offer them jobs.

Joseph Sage, president and owner of the West Covina Auto Group - which consists of West Covina Nissan and West Covina Toyota - has offered to hire a handful of Ziad Alhassen's employees.

Alhassen in the last two months lost control of his companies, Hassen Imports Partnership and West Covina Motors, Inc. A judge converted the companies - which operated Chevrolet, Hummer, Ford and Chrysler dealership franchises in the West Covina Auto Plaza - from bankruptcy to liquidation cases, resulting in employee layoffs.

Sage this week said he wanted to provide opportunities for those left out in the cold.
"It appeared to me that these are people who live in the community and they would be invaluable to us, to have some local residents working for us," Sage said. "We're looking to grow our business there and would certainly like to give them an opportunity to apply. "

Mike Lateer - one of the employees who worked at the Chevrolet dealership and was escorted off the premises - said he appreciated Sage's generosity.

"That's very nice of him thinking of the people that were let go," said the Covina resident, who now commutes to Glendale where he works at another dealership.

The Toyota dealership, at 1800 E. Garvey Ave. South, has an open call for interviews every Saturday.
"We're not looking to steal other people's employees, but Saturdays are an open call for anyone in the industry," Sage said.

West Covina Motors filed for bankruptcy in December after its franchise with General Motors was terminated.

The lots for the past few years have had no new fleet of cars and have remained largely empty, but Alhassen continued to employ about 15 car maintenance employees at the dealerships.

The judge's decision to covert the cases to Chapter 7 liquidation ousted the developer and his attorneys from management and control of the real estate holding company, which owns 11 properties in Covina and West Covina, including the car dealership sites.

There is now a trustee, Howard Ehrenberg, in place to market and sell all of the real estate properties owned by the partnership, clearing the way for new developments at each site.
A second trustee will be appointed to the case involving West Covina Motors and that person will decide what to do with its remaining assets.

Despite the empty dealerships that have marred West Covina's auto corridor, Sage said the real estate holdings in the area are still vibrant and active. "I know Mr. Alhassen's dealerships were very prominent in the neighborhood," he said. "But the city is not without auto dealerships. "

Sage said employing West Covina residents have been his priority with his local dealerships.
"When you buy a car from a dealership in that neighborhood and your employee is a person in that neighborhood, the community benefits from the tax dollars generated and we're really looking to keep things in West Covina, whether it's an employee or customers," Sage said. "It's really beneficial for everyone, and we really like to keep things local. "

***Courtesy of www.sgvtribune.com