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Electric-car company Tesla Motors is moving into the former Infiniti dealership site in Lyndhurst.

(Sara Dorn, Northeast Ohio Media Group)

LYNDHURST, Ohio — Tesla Motors, an electric car company specializing in custom-made vehicles, is moving into the former Infiniti dealership on Mayfield Road.

Infiniti moved out in June, and Silicon Valley-based Tesla is spending $150,000 to renovate the store. It's expected to open in November.

At more than 23,000-square-feet, the store will be the largest of three Tesla showrooms in the state, and the only one with a dual service center. Unlike traditional dealerships that work as liaisons between the customer and manufacturer, Tesla both makes and sells its vehicles.

"We place stores and service centers in strategic locations based on where we believe our current and future customer base live and in areas where people are informed and interested in technology," Tesla spokeswoman Alexis Georgeson said. "The Lyndhurst location is conveniently located off major corridors and easily accessible."

An Ohio House bill requested by the Ohio Automobile Dealers Association would have prohibited auto manufacturers from selling vehicles directly to consumers and prevented Tesla from opening the Lyndhurst store. Instead, lawmakers limited showrooms to three.

Customers can choose all of their own features for the sedan and SUV models. Cars are made to order, starting at $60,000 and arrive in three weeks. The company calls it a "no-pressure sales environment."

The sedans stay charged for about 250 miles, depending on which battery you buy. Each car comes with a charger that can be plugged into an household outlet. Drivers traveling a long distance can charge up at one of 119 stations across the U.S., including one built in Macedonia earlier this year.

Tesla isn't adding to the existing structure at 5180 Mayfield Rd., Lyndhurst building inspector Larry Puskas said, and it didn't need any variances to complete the work.

"They just gave it a facelift inside and added electrical outlets to accommodate the cars," he said.

It will feature a large screen on the back wall, interactive touch screens customers can use to learn about the cars, a car skeleton and a completed Tesla model.

The dealership has seen two quick turnovers in the past year after more than 15 years as a Sims Car Mall. Infiniti moved in last year.

Tesla's move is one of only two economic development projects in Lyndhurst this year. The city is "land-locked," public officials say, now that Cleveland Metroparks bought its last piece of vacant property, the former Acacia Country Club site, in 2012.

The other project is the new Abo's Bar & Grill, also on Mayfield Road across from city hall. An independent owner is building a free-standing structure on the once-vacant lot and plans to open an Italian restaurant there.