The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Passing the baton
Wilber-Duck Chevrolet changing hands with Frank Duck and Biff Wilber retire
Wilber-Duck Chevrolet is changing hands, but keep- ing its Broad Street location.
William Nye, president of Nye Automotive, is purchasing the location and said the deal has been in the works for the last six months.
“Everything is staying the same,” Nye said. “Nothing changes. I’m not moving anything, I’m not tearing anything down. It’ll be a name change, that’s it.”
“We have loved every day that we have been here and feel so blessed by the support that people in this community have given us,” said Wilber-Duck co-owner Frank Duck, who with Biff Wilber opened the dealership 20 years ago after purchasing it from Dennis McCarthy after he retired. “Every day over the last two weeks people have been stopping in to thank us for making Oneida better and to tell us how
much they will miss having us here and to express appreciation for what we have contributed to the community.”
Nye said most of the 11 employees working at Wilber-Duck will be staying.
“Nye is inheriting an ex- tremely talented teamfrom us here,” Duck said.
For the past 19 years, Wilber-Duck Chevrolet has hosted the Wilber-Duck Mile to raise money for local charities. In that time, the dealership raised more than $20,000 at the annual run.
“It was never about the business aspect, it was about doing what we could to make Oneida better,” Duck said.
Duck said after 47 years in the automotive business, he and Wilber are retiring. The industry is rapidly changing, faster than it has in the last 50 years, Duck said.
“Bill is a huge business owner in this area and employs over 200 people,” said Ward 5 Councilor and Deputy Mayor Jim Chamberlain said.
“We are extremely grateful to have been here and appreciate all the great people of Oneida,” said Wilber. “We are very happy that Bill Nye is taking over this business and are sure he will do a great job as he has with his other dealerships.”
“I take my hat off to Billy for picking up this dealership and keeping it downtown,” Chamberlain added. “I really do. He’s a good businessman.”
Chamberlain said he spent almost half an hour talking with Nye about the future of Nye Automotive in Oneida.
“He talked about all the neat things he’s doing there and what he’s planning on doing,” Chamberlain said. “They’re going to grow. It makes you feel good.”
Wilber and Duck are both incredibly grateful to the community support they’ve had over the years, and will miss being here because of the people; however, they both feel very positive about the future of the dealership in Nye’s hands. Their mantra has been “It’s a great day at Wilber-Duck” and they are both confident the future mantra will be “It’s going to be an even greater day at Nye Chevrolet.”