[From the Herald-News] The mayor of Joliet reverted to his business role Thursday when hosting a ribbon-cutting for the largest Hyundai dealership in North America. The 67,500-square-foot dealership building on Essington Road is three times the size of Terry D’Arcy’s former Hyundai location.

“It’s the biggest in North America,” D’Arcy said while conducting a tour of the new facility. “I have a lot of faith in Hyundai. I plan to grow into it.”

The Joliet Region Chamber of Commerce with D’Arcy held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Nov. 9. The front showroom area was spacious enough to hold the large crowd that attended. D’Arcy was joined by Tia Battle, Hyundai director and general manager for the central region, and others for the event.

“We are so very happy that you are part of the Hyundai family,” Battle said at the ceremony, noting that D’Arcy is part of the Hyundai Brand Ambassadors group that includes the top dealers in the nation.

Battle mentioned some of D’Arcy’s other achievements beyond being elected mayor of Joliet in April. He served as president and chairman of the Chicago Auto and Trade Association and also is a past chairman of the Chicago Auto Show.

The Hyundai dealership at 2000 Essington Road sits next to the D’Arcy Buick-GMC dealership on 25 acres of land where D’Arcy has established his Joliet business. He also has a dealership in Morris for Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac vehicles. D’Arcy has been a Hyundai dealer for 23 years. He has been an auto dealer for 32 years.

The car wash at the Joliet property can wash 80 vehicles an hour, a feature D’Arcy said comes in handy, as every vehicle that gets serviced also gets a car wash. The Buick-GMC and Hyundai dealerships each have 38 service bays.

Customers may not notice it, but as they drive into the service area, they cross over a fixture equipped with technology to measure tire tread depth, check the brakes and conduct other safety checks. “It takes 40 pictures of your car,” D’Arcy said. “This is the latest technology.”

The Hyundai dealership is equipped with eight charging stations – four on the outside and four on the inside – for electric vehicles. In a matter of weeks, Hyundai customers will be able to bring their vehicles back to the dealership for charging, which can take a half-hour, and wait inside where a customer service area includes Starbucks coffee machines. The dealership also features an indoor staging area, where a buyer’s car is parked right by the desk where the transaction is completed.

D’Arcy bought the Essington Road property 20 years ago. He opened the Buick-GMC dealership 15 years ago, and that facility has doubled in size since he opened it.

The Hyundai dealership may be a little large, but D’Arcy said it’s built for expansion. “We want to grow into it,” he said, “not out of it.”