A ribbon-cutting ceremony has this week been held to mark the opening of a new a Ford service centre at the Oaktree Business Park in Highbridge.
Tarnock Garage, a long-running local garage, held the grand opening on Monday (July 4th) as it moved to the new 5,000 sq foot premises.
Tarnock Garage – previously based in the village of Tarnock near Rooksbridge – dates back to the 1950’s as a workshop and filling station, but latterly as a Skoda and then Daihatsu franchise.
The current owners, the Brace family, took over in 2006 and started the latest chapter, transforming it into a Ford garage in 2008.
The new premises features a six vehicle bay Ford workshop with modern facilities.
The new modern facility is able to look after the needs of local Ford owners, both car and commercial vehicles, as well as the emerging hybrid and electric vehicle technology.
Simon Brace, director of Tarnock Garage, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “We are all extremely delighted to open this wonderful modern new building on this prestigious business park.”
“It replaces our previous outdated premises in Tarnock. We have a new building that will see us through the future with investment in electrification and modern vehicles.”
“This is a significantly bigger site for us – we had four working bays and now here we have six. Each bay is a lot bigger than before and we have more height to service vans.”
“The new building has cost around £800,000 – it is a significant investment in Somerset and we have used local tradesmen wherever possible.”
Burnham and Highbridge’s Mayor, Cllr Lesley Millard, said the opening represents “very welcome investment into Highbridge.”
Simon Finch, Dealer Representation Manager for Ford, adds: “Ford would like to thank Tarnock Garage for investing in a fantastic new service operation on Oaktree Business Park.”
“The site is an early adopter of Ford’s new ‘Signature’ design, which is the new global design for a vibrant, innovative and digitally connected retail environment.”
“The new Tarnock Garage service site provides customers in the area with a modern facility and positive service experience for years to come.”
Tarnock Garage currently employs 11 people, but it says this number will grow following the move to their new facility, securing and expanding employment opportunities in the area. Around 6-8 new jobs are expected to be created.
