COLONIE — A high- end motorcycle dealership will be moving into the former Bul Auto Sales building at 2054 Central Ave.
The Planning Board granted a setback waivers to the site plan and agreed to a $28,685 fee to allow for less greenspace than the 35 percent required.
Bul sold high end automobiles and the new tenant, JSC Motorsports, will sell Ducati and Triumph motorcycles at the one-acre site between Alta Road and Marilou Street.
JSC Motorsports is owned by Steven Cho, of Westchester County, and the plan was presented to the Planning Board by Lansing Engineering, of Malta.
The company will renovate the existing one-story, 14,300-square-foot building in the Commercial Office Residential zone and increase the number of parking spots from 13 to 28. Access to the back of the building will also be constructed to facilitate deliveries and service of the motorcycles.
Ducati is headquartered in Italy but is owned by the German auto manufacturer Audi through its Italian subsidiary Lamborghini. The bikes are known for speed and have been called the “Ferrari of the motorcycle world. “
The company was founded by three Italian brothers in 2923 who began by making radios. After WWII there was a huge need for transportation in Italy so they shifted gears and started making motorcycles.
There are many Ducati models in the $15,000 range with higher end bikes going for about $30,000 but the most expensive Ducati is the Superlegerra V4 which runs $100,000.
The nearest Ducati dealerships are in Northampton, Massachusetts, about 60 miles from Albany, and Danbury, Connecticut, about 90 miles away.
Triumph began building bicycles in England in 1889. It produced it first motorcycle in 1902, which was basically a bicycle with a motor attached. In 1915, at the onset of WWI, the British army needed a way to dispatch messages and Triumph built the Model H, the first motorcycle developed without pedals and is considered the first modern day motorcycle, according to the company website.
Today, the bikes sell for as little as $9,000 and the top of the line can go for about $22,000. They are popular because of their unique design, storied history and reliability.
The closest Triumph dealer to Colonie is in North Adams, Massachusetts, about 40 miles away, and Enfield, Connecticut, about 85 miles away.
