11/28/12 - Ford Motor Company is in the process of tearing down about a quarter of its sprawling former assembly plant in Wixom. The Ford Wixom Assembly Plant, now known as the Ford Renewable Energy Park, once employed thousands including some Livingston County residents. The City of Wixom has said the site is being razed "in preparation of a bright new future." Ford Company spokeswoman Becky Sanch said the automaker is "in sales negotiations on the property" and the demolition "is agreed upon by everyone involved." The Wixom Assembly Plant was one of Ford's largest and oldest manufacturing sites, opening in 1957. It was the most profitable plant in the industry during the 1980âs and closed in 2007 after a half-century of producing the Lincoln Town Car, Ford Thunderbird and GT and the Lincoln Continental. The last car produced was a white chocolate Lincoln Town Car, which rolled off the line at 12:55pm on May 31st, 2007. According to figures supplied by Ford at the time of the plant's closure, peak employment stood at nearly 5,500 in 1973. (JM)
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