VerHage preserving Mopar Museum for future generations

In their initial discussions, it was thought VerHage Motors Mitsubishi of Holland might have to relocate its car dealership to make room for the Holland Board of Public Works’ new natural gas power plant.

It ended up being a false alarm.

The two sides, failing to reach agreement on a purchase price for the entire property at 343 E. Eighth St., settled on a compromise plan that instead forced the relocation of the famed Mopar Museum — with all of its vintage Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth vehicles — to the front half of the same lot.

The sum of $409,000, including $12,000 for moving expenses for the stylish occupants of the museum, was paid to the VerHages to surrender a portion of the rear parking lot and a vacant lot on Seventh Street. It’s a deal that protects the living history of the classic car collection for future generations.

“We thought we might sell the whole thing,” said Norm VerHage, vice president and general manager of the dealership. “It’s just too costly to move. It never was a serious consideration.

“(The city of Holland) was open to buying property all the way up to Eighth Street. We just couldn’t get with them on all of the numbers,” he said of the negotiations. “There were just too many factors.”

One of the most important factors was the fate of the Mopar Museum.

Its primary caretaker, family patriarch Lloyd VerHage, isn’t thrilled about abandoning the existing museum. He understands the plant is a sign of progress for the Holland community, but he still has a sentimental attachment to it.

“I would like to keep it just like it is,” Lloyd VerHage said. “It’s just an ideal spot and we’ve got lots of parking. We will have to get rid of a few of the cars to accommodate this move. It’s a personal thing to me.”

It’s the 100th anniversary of the VerHage family selling cars in the West Michigan area.

Henry VerHage started selling Chalmers, Maxwell and Overland autos in 1914 in Hudsonville. Lloyd VerHage left the family business in 1963 to open his own Chrysler dealership on Chicago Drive in Holland. Along the way, he began collecting some of the most adored models during the Mopar era.

The first car in the museum’s collection is a 1929 Plymouth Roadster two-door deluxe rumble seat coupe that was a trade-in by Holland City Manager Herb Holt on a new 1969 Plymouth Fury convertible.

The demolition crew working just behind VerHage Mitsubishi Motors has prompted several inquiries from Mopar admirers as to the impending fate of the museum, Norm VerHage said. He has reassured fans of the museum, which has experienced a surge in attendance this summer, that it’ll be preserved.

The museum is open to the public and admission is free.

“It’s probably the No. 1 question we’re getting right now: ‘What’s happening to the car museum?’ Then they ask if we’re moving,” Norm VerHage said. “This property was never subject to condemnation for the new power plant. It’s a pretty commonly asked question, that’s for sure.”

The new site of the Mopar Museum is actually the old site.

The car-detailing structure, which includes storage and offices, is being remodeled and expanded to twice its current size to accommodate the relocation of all but a few of 31 classic cars. It had been the museum site for many years until the collection outgrew that 50-by-64-foot space.

One of the exhibited cars, a 1986 Chrysler Laser, is up for sale in the dealership’s showroom. The Laser, which has never been titled, is being sold for the original sticker price of $16,900.

The new museum is getting an exterior makeover, including some new windows, and improved signage for visibility where Eighth Street and Chicago Drive meet at the eastern gateway into Holland. The expansion project should begin in October and be completed by the end of the year.

Holland BPW is planning to use the old museum to store building materials and generators through the winter months. It’ll then demolish the site to make room for a nature park adjacent to the plant.

“The cars are really the stars of the museum,” Norm VerHage said. “When it’s all done, it’ll be something different. It’ll be a little more visible. We thought about selling some of the cars, but my father is the one who found and bought those cars. It means a lot to him. It’s a family thing.”

— Follow this reporter on Twitter @BizHolland.