The Sapulpa City Council voted to accept three of the four bids received for parcels of land placed for auction earlier this month, while rejecting one of the bids.
The process officially kicked off on June 16th, with the signing of Resolution No. 4859, which stipulated that the City Council found it “advisable and in the best interests of the inhabitants of the City” to sell several properties via live auction.
Six pieces of property were then placed up for auction on July 15th. Of the six properties, four received bids. Only one of the four bids was actually enough to meet the minimum the City had placed on the property.
Rules dictated that the bidders were bidding on the property “as-is,” with no guarantees made as to whether or not the parcel was buildable under current zoning, nor any building on said parcel would be habitable. Bidders were also expected to complete the sale within 20 days of the City Council’s decision to accept their bid, and would be required to apply for a building permit within 6 months of the date of closing.
Winning bidders were also required to pay a deposit of 10% of their winning bid to the City the day of the auction.
The parcels up for auction were as follows:
208 N Gray Street
Minimum bid: $18,000
Final bid amount: $18,000 (MCR Properties; accepted)
224 N. Burnett Street
Minimum bid: $18,000
Final bid amount: $10,000 (Burst Properties; accepted)
619 N 2nd Street
Minimum bid: $10,000
No bid received
620 N 2nd Street
Minimum bid: $20,000
No bid received
707 N Ross Street
Minimum bid: $18,000
Final bid amount: $8,000 (Burst Properties; accepted)
N 13th Street & W Speer Ave
Minimum bid: $45,000
Final bid amount: $25,000 (Burst Properties; not accepted)
At the Monday, July 21st City Council meeting, City Councilman Hugo Naifeh made a motion to accept the first three bids, but deny the last, believing that the $20,000 difference between the minimum bid and the final bid was too great. The rest of the council agreed.
The council’s declining of the bid doesn’t mean the property cannot still be sold; the bidder may choose to make another offer, or the council can entertain an offer from another buyer.
As to the properties that had no bid submitted, the City is retaining ownership for the time being, but interested parties who weren’t present at the auction need only to reach out to City Hall to find out more about the available properties.
