Teton Toyota to open Volkswagen dealership

An area car dealership is adding as many as 50 new jobs to its lot.

Teton Toyota is getting ready to open a Volkswagen dealership in the coming weeks.

Dealership managers are looking for service writers, technicians and administrative staff. Several salesmen have already been hired.

“My wife wants to stay home with our two kids, and this job will provide me the opportunity for me to provide enough for my family,” said newly hired salesman Jared Barraclough. “It’s fantastic!”

The new dealership comes after Wackerli Volkswagen shut its doors, prompting drivers in eastern Idaho to take their Volkswagens as far as Salt Lake City or Twin Falls for service.

“(That) is quite an inconvenience for people, and especially — we deal with a lot of people in rural communities and it’s an even further drive for them,” said Mario Hernandez, who will manage the new dealership. “They’re excited to have that local service and warranty work and those kind of things.”

Teton Volkswagen will start building the new dealership between Teton Toyota and Pioneer Road on Sunnyside in March 2013. Meanwhile, a temporary location will open on the opposite side of the Toyota dealership on Dec. 10.