MY EVERETT NEWS

You’re going to have to shop around now to get the best price on gas…

They say a picture is worth a thousand words as two different gas stations in Everett are well above $4.00 a gallon for unleaded gas. The Shell station on Broadway just north of the 526 interchange at Eastmont and the Chevron station at 110th and 19th Ave. SE near Silver Lake today topped the $4.00 a gallon mark. It does pay to shop around as the AM-PM station at 100th and 19th SE about halfway between the two, is selling unleaded at $3.69 a gallon. That is as of the time of this posting…

$3.89 a gallon and they pump it for you. No car wash required

Mark Hoidal has been selling gas and washing cars for 37 years

If you’ve ever driven by the General Brushless Car Wash on Evergreen Way in Everett you’ve likely seen the funny sayings on the readerboard. Today when I drove by, I saw on the sign that unleaded gas was $3.89. Since that’s much less than other stations are charging, I stopped in to ask the owner how he was able to offer such a good price. Mark Hoidal has been selling gas and washing cars for 37 years. He tells me he’s seen how the price fluctuates over time and as prices went up in recent months he adjusted how he buys his gas. Once affiliated with the Texaco brand, Hoidal is now unbranded and is free to choose from various suppliers. “My driver has five or six brands to choose from when he gets to the refinery,” said Hoidal. “They vary in price between five and ten cents a gallon depending on the brand and he selects the least expensive.”

Hoidal says that the price of gas remains high at many stations since they still have thousands of gallons in their tanks that they purchased at higher prices weeks ago. He says he didn’t re-order as often when prices went up and he let his tanks run empty. When it was time to fill up his storage tanks, he got only 5000 gallons instead of his usual 11,000. He did sell some inventory below cost to get to where he could charge less than the other stations and says he plans to drop the price another five to ten cents a gallon tomorrow. “I’d rather not be in the gas business and I don’t much like the gas business,” said Hoidal. “I’m really in the car wash business and just sell gas.” Hoidal says that now that the BP refinery is open again there’s a glut of gas on the market and he expects prices to continue to drop. With the market being spread so wide open with the opening of gas stations at stores like Safeway, Fred Meyer and Costco his strategy is to keep his prices the lowest in Everett, and hope people also need their car washed as well.

It can be painful at the pump.

Last night’s Everett City Council meeting provided another lesson on why its good to buy in bulk. The Everett City Council unanimously approved a contract with Associated Petroleum Products for bulk fuel. While the pricing for bulk fuel is variable, the savings over purchasing in the retail market is pretty significant. Currently the city is paying $2.97 a gallon for unleaded gas and $2.80 a gallon for diesel. Last year the city of Everett spent about 2.6 million dollars on fuel for its fleet.

3.99 for cash or oil company card, 4.05 for credit or debit

Using your debit card is not the same as using cash at this Everett Chevron station at the corner of Broadway and Everett avenues. The clerk inside told me that the owner, who also has four other stations was trying this as a promotion. So while you may think that AM/PM is the only one charging a fee for debit cards, if you get more than 8 gallons you’re also paying .48 cents for using your debit card. As a matter of fact, if you get 15 gallons at our example station, you’re paying twice what you would at an AM/PM with your debit card. The little lesson in all of this? It pays to shop around a bit and look closely at the signs as gas prices in Everett, WA continue their climb to $5.00 a gallon by summer.

There are days lately when it feels like this is more truth than poetry…

The sign at Texaco General Car Wash at 6101 Evergreen Way. They're only kidding, I hope.

I took these pictures this morning. These two stations are within 3 miles of each other in South Everett. You may want to shop around before you fill up.

I saw my first Everett gas station where all grades were over the $4.00 a gallon mark. It’s the Shell at 8402 Broadway right by the SB I-5 on ramp at Eastmont. Meanwhile 3 miles away at the AM/PM at 100th and 19th SE the prices were considerably cheaper. Looks like it’s really gonna pay to shop around a bit. Even other Shell stations in south Everett weren’t as high-priced as this one but they say it’s only the beginning as regular unleaded may hit $4.50 by Memorial Day.