Mark Thomas breathed a little easier Friday, but the fact that his Mark Thomas Motors in Albany was not on the list of dealerships slated for elimination by Chrysler didn't really bring him much comfort.

"I'm happy about surviving the cut but I lost a lot of my friends," he said. "I feel terrible for the dealers who are on the list."

When Chrysler released its list during bankruptcy filings Thursday in New York, it did not include any dealers from the mid-valley.

Roberson Chrysler, Plymouth and Dodge in Lebanon and Wilson Motors in Corvallis also escaped the cut, but nine Oregon dealerships received notice.

Chrysler announced in a motion to U.S. Bankruptcy Court that it wants to eliminate 789 dealerhships nationwide by June 9. Dealerships received word through a United Parcel Service letter.

Bill Chertudi, sales manager at Roberson, said it was business as usual Friday.

"You hate to see any business get that kind of news," he said. "We're just tickled that we weren't on the list and we'll go about our business like we always do."

Chertudi said employees hadn't been too worried about what might happen.

"It's not anything we could control, so there was no use losing sleep," he said.

Oddly enough, Chertudi said, new car sales have improved since Chrysler announced it was filing for bankruptcy. He said he expected there were changes coming down the line, but said for now the company wouldn't be changing anything.

Thomas said he had felt like his business had a good chance to make Chrysler's cut for continuing, but there was always a feeling of uncertainty.

"You just never know. We have done so many things right with good service and being profitable, but until we heard one way or the other we just weren't sure," he said.

Thomas, whose dealership has been in Albany for 20 years, said most of the businesses that received the word from Chrysler are owned by people who have been in the business their entire lives.

"It's like they have been killed," he said. "It's an awful feeling."

Down the line he thinks a merger with Fiat will help the auto maker, and he knows that by eliminating dealerships the market will be better for those who have survived. Still, it doesn't lessen the blow.

"The best news is that I don't have to do anymore cutting," Thomas said. "But I still feel bad."

GM cuts skip mid-valley

General Motors announced Friday that it would be cutting more than 1,000 dealerships from its national network, but mid-valley dealers seem to have survived.

Mark Thomas Motors in Albany, Primasing Motors in Lebanon and Lassen Chevrolet in Albany all had not received notification of termination as of late Friday afternoon. Randy Jones Chevrolet in Corvallis did receive a letter but it outlined certain conditions that must be met to remain open, not a letter saying the dealership would be cut.