Commercial Development Resources (CDR), California’s premier civil engineering land development firm, announced today the company has completed a new service center, the Mercedes-Benz House of Imports.
The House of Imports in Buena Park in Orange County, California is a three-story luxury auto dealership for all things Mercedes-Benz featuring two levels of parking and another for service. This project required a seven-acre update of the entire site to meet fire code, grading, stormwater, and utility requirements.
There were issues with drainage, existing utilities, and the challenge to tie into the adjacent site’s drive aisle and operations. The skilled team of consultants worked together through every hurdle, while continuously meeting a rigorous Mercedes-Benz timeline with milestone dates that triggered financial incentives from the parent company.
“Mercedes Benz House of Imports was a very complex project and a part of a master plan involving all AutoNation’s dealerships and remote properties in Buena Park. It was a big piece of a larger puzzle. To add further complication this project was permitted and entitled during the pandemic with construction commencing after lockdown restrictions started to ease.”
-Cliff Powell, Director of Construction and Development at AutoNation.
Cliff went on to say, “To help traverse these compounded complexities, a top-tier team was needed for permitting and entitlements, site development, utilities, and construction. I needed a team that could act fast, think divergently, and navigate the difficult and sometimes abstruse processes of the various municipalities involved. CDR played an integral role that included civil engineering, utility planning, and coordination which made the project a success!”
CDR’s proactive and practical approach resulted in a successful project. Their efforts in coordination with all of the relevant consultants minimized field changes and change order costs, and their creativity and willingness to think outside the box provided AutoNation with solutions that fit their needs, saving time, money, and resources.
“With premium visibility to the I-5 freeway in Buena Park, CA, in combination with the sheer magnitude and scale of this project, the team understood this would be a crown jewel in AutoNation’s portfolio. Getting approvals and permits was fairly difficult in southern California even before the pandemic hit, however despite the challenges, we still needed to meet very specific brand milestone/incentive dates, We accomplished our goals, met milestone dates, and kept the existing dealership open for business. It was a total team effort and we all appreciated Cliff Powell’s leadership throughout the process.”
-Aaron Albertson, principal at Commercial Development Resources.
About Commercial Development Resources
Founded in 2007, Commercial Development Resources is an industry leader in civil engineering, land development, dry utility, and surveying services in the western and southeastern United States. With a staff of experienced and highly-trained civil engineers, CDR has a portfolio of hundreds of successful land development projects across an array of industries such as auto dealerships, restaurants, shopping centers, retail stores, high-density residential, theme parks, and more. From CDR’s Costa Mesa, California headquarters and Charlotte, North Carolina office, the company serves landmark clients such as Merlin Entertainments, AutoNation, Lithia Motors, The Irvine Company, Jack in the Box, and Popeyes to get their projects designed and approved on time and at a minimum cost.