West Fargo approves plan for Gateway to build car dealership

WEST FARGO, N.D. (KVRR-KFGO) – West Fargo City Commissioners approved a conditional use permit on a 3-2 vote to allow Gateway Auto Company to move ahead with plan for a Nissan/Hyundai dealership. Two buildings are proposed on the property at 450 23rd Avenue East, south of I-94 and near Duluth Trading Company.

Some residents living in the Rivers Bend neighborhood nearby have protested the plan, worried about more traffic and their property values among other concerns.

City Commissioner Mandy George agreed. She called the idea “a horrible idea.” George said the residential area is one of the nicest neighborhoods in the city and having the car dealership is a “terrible location.”

Sidney Rustvang, with the Gateway dealerships, told the city commissioners the buildings would be located on the north end of the property, close to I-94, and built some 400 feet away from any residential locations.

City Commissioner Brad Olson said that he studied the impact auto dealerships could have on property values and that he could not find any major problems that hurt the homes.