$1.95 million bid equals Stark County appraisal; does not appear to meet sale standard

MASSILLON – The downtown 59 Duncan Place apartment building fetched a high bid of $1.95 million Wednesday afternoon, concluding a three-day online auction.

However, that amount does not appear to meet an unspecified reserve price necessary to complete a purchase. It's unclear whether any second chance offers were made.

More:Downtown Massillon apartment complex up for sale

Cody Carey, a broker associate with Colliers, a real estate brokerage service and investment management company, told The Independent Tuesday that the building at 59 Lincoln Way E could be relisted for sale if the desired price was not met.

He did not immediately return a phone message Wednesday following the auction.

Within the last 30 minutes of the bidding process, the amount ramped up from $1.5 million to $1.95 million. Bids were initially placed in $100,000 increments followed by those of $50,000 each.

Bids were accepted through 1:18 p.m. Wednesday by Colliers via www.Ten-x.com. The original 1 p.m. deadline to make bids was extended as late offers trickled in.

The 68-unit, 82,000-square-foot apartment property is positioned along Lincoln Way E and First Street SE, across the street from Duncan Plaza and the Massillon Museum.

More:New Greatness Cafe to open this weekend in Massillon Museum lobby

The commercial structure, built in 1920, last sold for $1.77 million in January 2018. Stark County had appraised the property for $1.95 million this year. It's currently owned by Massillon Center LLC of Ypsilanti, Michigan, according to county property records.

Stark County businessman, property owner did not bid

Jeff Doll, owner of Jeff's Motorcars Inc., told The Independent on Wednesday that he was not bidding on the Duncan apartment building, citing an inadequate parking situation.

"It's a cool building, but my concern is the parking," said Doll, adding that many residents of the building park their cars along public streets or do not own vehicles.

The Duncan building sits on 0.21 of an acre and has no dedicated residential parking lot.

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Doll owns numerous renowned buildings in Massillon, including the Social at the Stone House on Lincoln Way E; Chloe's Diner on First Street NE; the structure that houses Margarita's Mexican Grill & Cantina on Lincoln Way W; and the multi-purpose building that's home to Tremont Coffee Co., Tremont Creamery and the 41 Club on Erie Street N.

Reach Steven at steven.grazier@indeonline.com.

On Twitter: @sgrazierINDE