Tesla New York stores to remain open after deal brokered by governor Andrew Cuomo
29 Mar 2014
New York governor Andrew Cuomo yesterday helped negotiate a deal to support billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk's zero emissions vehicles.
Cuomo yesterday said New York's auto dealers had agreed to let Musk's electric car company, Tesla Motors, keep its direct-selling stores open.
The deal was approved Thursday by both Tesla and several auto dealership groups across the state, New York Post reported citing sources.
''Today's agreement reaffirms New York's long-standing commitment to the dealer franchise system, while making sure New York remains a leader in spurring innovative businesses and encouraging zero emissions vehicle sales'', Cuomo said in a statement.
The deal, would still need to be approved by the state legislature, and was the result of last-minute haggling that started last week when a bill to ban Tesla's direct- sales model was nearly unanimously approved by a second committee in the state assembly, the report said citing sources.
According to the report, the prospect of approval saw Tesla rush to negotiate, where Cuomo's top aide, Howard Glaser, acted as mediator, a source familiar with talks said.
Initially, the dealer groups, that had supported the bill to shut the five stores, adopted a softer stance and required the stores to shift to a dealer model after eight years - but Tesla put its foot down, according to sources.
According to Cuomo the agreement allowed Tesla Motors to keep its five retail locations in the state as part of a compromise to strengthen auto dealer franchise protections while allowing Tesla's direct sales.
According to the office of the governor, the deal includes the New York State Automobile Dealers Association and the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association.
Tesla said, the compromise protected franchise dealers' existing business while letting Tesla keep trying to build the market for "sustainable transportation."
According to member of the assembly, David Buchwald, a Democrat who had three Tesla locations in his district, the agreement put paid to efforts by some New York legislators to close the locations after a similar move by New Jersey regulators.
