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There are signs of new life at a longstanding used car dealership near downtown Pleasanton in recent months, for the first time since it was shuttered amid an alleged fraud scandal and court proceedings involving its former occupant.
New signage has gone up at the site of Specialty Sales Classics at 4321 First St., which is currently being revamped as a new outpost for the Dublin-based East Bay Motorcars.
In addition to the signage, an employee at the Dublin location confirmed to the Weekly that the dealership would be opening in Pleasanton. No further details were made available, however, and attempts to contact the company’s owner remained unsuccessful as of Tuesday evening.
According to records from the city of Pleasanton, permitting for the new signage was approved by the Design Review Board on June 6. NAWLIST Inc., the San Ramon-based parent company of East Bay Motorcars, has an active business license for the site that was renewed in the past month through the end of 2026.
The site has been empty since 2024, when Specialty Sales Classics owner Kenneth Mattson was hit by an FBI investigation and a lawsuit from his former business partner. He was taken into custody in May on federal fraud charges alleging that he defrauded investors by operating a Ponzi scheme.
In addition to the criminal charges, Mattson is facing bankruptcy proceedings that prevent him from transferring ownership or selling off any portion of his real estate portfolio without approval from the bankruptcy court.
Although it is clear that the site will be operating under a new business, the site of the car dealership was listed for sale in June 2024 according to Loopnet. However, no public information about when – or if – the property was sold, transferred, or leased was available.
NAWLIST Inc. has been operating out of San Ramon for more than 10 years, according to records from the city. Its CEO is Nawaid Hamid according to LinkedIn, a San Ramon resident and 2007 alumnus of San Ramon Valley High School.
Mattson, who is out on bail, was set to return to court for a status conference at 9:30 a.m. Friday morning.
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