Baldwinville Road property draws no bids

Baldwinville Road property draws no bids

Officials support pursuing sale of building through brokerage
Kerry O'Brien
News Staff Writer

TEMPLETON — Town officials are now planning to sell 252 Baldwinville Road through a commercial brokerage after no bids were received for the property by Monday’s deadline.

“We have complied with state law. We have posted on the central register, advertised in the newspaper, on the website, on bulletin boards,” said Town Administrator Jeffrey Ritter. “Why not turn it over to a commercial real estate broker to see if they can effectively market it on a contingency for a percentage of the sale price, as all commercial properties and many residential properties are?”


The property was initially purchased by the town in 2010, with the intention of converting the former home of Materials Unlimited Inc. for use as a town hall. Voters had approved borrowing $1.9 million for the acquisition and renovation of the facility.

The project was halted when bids for construction came in higher than anticipated. Town meeting voters later decided to disband the building committee.

Voters at the Oct. 23 Special Town Meeting also rejected a citizens petition proposing to create a new committee to pursue the completion of the project at what supporters said would be a substantially lower price tag.

The Board of Selectmen decided to sell the building in January, and in April the property was put out to bid with a minimum bid of $330,000 to $350,000 based on the property’s appraised value.

When no bids were received, town officials indicated there was interest in the property, but that those parties indicated they were put off by the minimum bid.

The selectmen on Sept. 4 voted to put the property up for sale without a minimum bid, and bids were accepted through noon Monday.

“Unfortunately, we did not receive any bids,” said selectmen Chairman Jeffrey Bennett. “Perhaps we can look into the legalities of marketing this versus the public bid process.”

The selectmen on Monday unanimously backed selling the property through a commercial brokerage, contingent on that course of action being legal.

“It’s really difficult to sell property in this market, particularly the type of property that we’re selling,” said Selectman Kenn Robinson. “If it’s legal, I’d say it’s a great idea.”

While no bids were received, town officials noted that there were 10 to 12 potential bidders. Officials plan to follow up with those who expressed initial interest.

“We could get some feedback there,” said Advisory Board Chairman Wilfred Spring.

In other business, the selectmen discussed how town employees’ hours will be adjusted to include the full 40 hours though a portion of the $620,000 Proposition 2 1/2 override recently approved by voters.

Some residents stated that including Friday hours would be more convenient, while town officials pointed out that having town offices open only four days per week saves on heating and electricity bills.

Town officials indicated that extended hours during the week could provide an added convenience to residents.

“People know we’re closed Friday, but being open later — if you work near Boston you don’t get home by 3 p.m., you need to take time off to come pay your bill,” Mr. Bennett said.

“We have varied hours, and I’d just like to see it be consistent so that people can do business,” said Selectman Julie Farrell.

The board plans to continue its discussion of employee hours at its next meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Nov. 3. 

[ correction: Next BOS Meeting is scheduled for November 12]