Chrysler and Murray Motors

Chrysler has offered to reinstate 36 of the 789 dealers that it threw under the bus last year. Port Angeles’ Murray Motors is one of the dealers that got cut loose by Chrysler, and so far it isn’t one of the dealers that Chrysler has offered to take back.

Mark Murray, owner of Murray Motors, said: “To me, it's like remarrying your ex-wife. Most of us don't want to do it. It's pretty well past the point of no return. I got rid of all the Chrysler cars and a lot of the parts.”

Mark Murray is the third-generation owner of Murray Motors. Murray Motors started in Clallam Bay in 1934 and moved to Port Angeles in 1944.

The contrasts between Murray Motors and Chrysler is a microcosm of two vastly different types of companies: a local small business that’s thrived for three generations by providing excellent service and has countless loyal customers, vs. a gigantic bloated corporation that doesn’t care about anything except enriching its highest-paid executives.

A Prison for Port Angeles?

Mayor Gary Braun mentioned the possibility of building a prison in Port Angeles. Prisons are a necessary evil but do we want one here?

According to the mayor it could create up to 300 new jobs. But is this the image we want for Port Angeles? As Karen Rogers said: “It’s just not a good fit for this community.”

City Councilman Larry Williams said he's heard from lots of people about the idea. “They told me we already have a prison in Clallam Bay, and they would just as soon leave it out there and expand it if needed.”

What do you think?