Belmont auto shops face uncertain future

Mike Struck, the owner of Gunter’s Auto, said SC Properties informed them in writing in March that it was increasing rents from $1,350 to $2,100 starting in June, with a 60-day notice. Struck said the 55% increase after his family had been tenants for around 50 years did not seem fair, noting a cost of living increase was understandable but not at a sharp rate without some compromise. Struck, 60, works alone and does not have employees, with most of his work coming through the repair of fleets in construction and paint companies. His parents opened the business in the 1970s, and he took over it in 2002. Stuck planned to work in Belmont until retirement, but his plans are now in limbo and the future of the shop is uncertain given the situation.

“I don’t know what I am going to do,” Struck said.

Struck said when he communicated with Jamil Musa of SC Properties about the price, Musa countered by telling him the price increase brought the rent closer to market rate. Old County Road parallels El Camino Real and is known for its light industrial uses such as warehouses and repair shops. Gunter’s Auto on Old County Road is less than half a mile from the Belmont Caltrain station. Struck said he has a good relationship as a tenant with the property owners and has not had any issues, with the conflict arising when SC Properties took over property management. Struck said rent increases at the site had been gradual in previous years, with rent increases frozen during the pandemic when the owners managed the property. Struck said he didn’t plan to pay the elevated rate that started in June, with the situation at a standstill.

“For $2,100 a month, I can’t do it. I’d be working just for rent,” Struck said.

Musa of SC Properties said the company and the property owners had no comment.

George Georgiou and Patrick Calleja run M & G Automotive Repair and also had their rent raised by SC Properties at the same rate as Gunter’s Auto. The pair are dealing with being evicted from their business, with Georgiou saying he offered to make late payments up to the current month to SC Properties to get in compliance, but SC Properties did not accept it because the eviction process had started. Georgiou hopes to convince SC Properties to sign a three-month temporary contract so he can at least have time to set up a business in another city.

“I have all these customers, and I have no place to go, and I can’t find one overnight,” Georgiou said. “You’ve just evicted a guy that has been around 30 years.”

The pair said they are considering setting up outside of Belmont because the city lacks appropriate zoning for automobile businesses, raising the possibility of losing customers who don’t want to drive far away. Georgiou has worked on and off at M & G Automotive Repair since the 1990s, and his father originally started the company. The business was going well when he returned in 2017, but it slowed considerably during the pandemic and never picked back up. Calleja worked in construction for many years and views auto work as his main job if he can find employment. Calleja said Georgiou’s family had helped so many people throughout the years, including himself, noting Georgiou’s dad gave him a job.