Type: Automotive

Size: 26,455 square feet

Owner: Twin Cities Automotive

Architect: Baker Associates

Details: Twin Cities Automotive, owned by Pohlad Cos., is seeking city approvals to double the size of the showroom of its recently purchased Porsche dealership along Interstate 394 Golden Valley.

The company, which two years ago had four Twin Cities auto dealerships, has since bought seven more, including two Porsche franchises, two Audi franchises, a Mercedes dealership in Maplewood and Chevrolet lots in Delano and North Branch.

Plans for the Golden Valley Porsche dealership call for an expansion of the showroom building from 12,994 to 26,455 square feet, with two new additions.

One addition, at the rear of the existing building, would include a new shop, tool room and carwash, while another on the southeast corner would house offices, parts storage and space for new car deliveries.

Twin Cities Automotive's Thomas Pohlad said in a project narrative that after operating the Porsche dealership for a year he expects new vehicle sales there to grow significantly, with even better sales foreseen in used-car sales.

Its staff, which now numbers 18 employees, is to be increased by as much as 55 percent in the next few years.

Porsche of Minneapolis has been chosen by the German automaker to be one of the first facilities in the United States to be updated to its new design standards, Pohlad wrote.

Don Jacobson is a freelance writer in St. Paul. He can be reached at hotproperty.star tribune@gmail.com.