Plaza Auto Auction of Iowa celebrated the facility's 50th Anniversary. Set for August 28, the anniversary celebration culminated with drawings for $50,000 in prizes and the presentation of Plaza's Dealer of the Year Award. 

The Dealer of the Year Award is an annual tradition at Plaza Auto Auction of Iowa, explained owner Mark Greb. He notes that the winner is determined by the auction employees, who are given ten nominees to consider several months in advance of the anniversary sale before voting for the dealer they feel should be named Dealer of the Year. 

"Determining the Dealer of the Year isn't as simple as calculating a top buyer or seller," said Greb. "This award really reflects the strength of the relationship that has developed between a dealer and our auction, and involves everyone on our staff. The Award means a great deal to both our customers and our employees, and is the highlight of our anniversary celebration." 

Greb said that the voting is in for this year's Dealer of the Year Award is completed several weeks in advance of the anniversary sale so that the recipient's family can be in attendance at the award presentation and the dealer's hometown newspapers can be notified. 

Customers began qualifying for cash and prizes that will be awarded at the auction's 50th Anniversary Sale in early June. Greb explains that the dealer selling the most vehicles between the first week of June and the Anniversary Sale will win $2,500, while the top buyer will also win $2,500. The top buyer in the Second Chance Auction will win $2,500, as will the top seller in the OVE sale. Dealers buying or selling more than 50 vehicles during the June to August 28th period will win a $1,000 in cash. In addition, all buyers and sellers in August qualify for a drawing for a number of $1,000 drawings. Topping the prize giveaways will be a drawing for a Polaris PZR 800 Ranger.

Greb said, "We wanted to make sure that all our buyers have an opportunity to win something during our 50th Anniversary Celebration, so we've planned a number of different giveaways that will include both large- and small-volume buyers." 

"It is a great year to be celebrating 50 years," concluded Greb. "Business continues to be excellent for our dealers, and we are well ahead of last year in terms of the numbers of vehicles consigned and sold. We're all looking forward to a fun and exciting celebration at our Anniversary event in August." 

Greb reports that the auction has recently opened an additional lane to accommodate the increase in consignments and that $250,000 in other capital improvements are underway as the auction prepares to celebrate 50 years. The auction is installing a new auction management system, and upgrading the auction arena with new video equipment. With activity from independent auto dealers on the upswing at Plaza, the auction is also remodeling and expanding its mechanic shop to increase its post-sale services to its customers. Exterior improvements include new asphalt and a lighting upgrade. 

Founded in 1963, Plaza Auto Auction has distinguished itself as the largest evening sale in the Midwest, holding an auction on Wednesdays at 6:30 pm. The auction offers over 500 vehicles for sale weekly, across five auction lanes with monthly specialty sales for trucks and motor sports. Along with consignments from new and used car dealers throughout the Midwest, Plaza Auto Auction of Iowa features vehicles from a number of regional and national fleet/lease and repo accounts, including PHH, Flexco Fleet Services, University of Iowa Community Credit Union, Emkay, Veridian Credit Union, Avis/Budget, Remarketing Solutions, Enterprise, and Fleet/Lease Disposal.