Update: Bank Rejects High Bid for Master Park Plaza
AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Talmer Bank and Trust has rejected the high bid for a plaza it owns at the corner of state Route 46 and Silica Road that sits directly across from the new Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course.
The plaza, once home to Master Park Martial Arts, The Vitamin Shop, and a private fitness center, Bodyworks, brought a bid of just $400,000 during a bank auction yesterday.
According to the Mahoning County Auditor’s website, the building and property is valued at $798,150 for tax purposes. Talmer foreclosed on the plaza in May and the sale was subject to bank confirmation.
Chris Roman, an auctioneer for George Roman Auctioneers Ltd., Canfield, said Thursday that he was hoping the plaza would bring a higher price.
“We were anticipating a little bit more,” he said following the auction. “We’ll present the offer and see what they [Talmer] decide to do.”
The bidding started with an asking price of $1 million with no takers, and then fell in increments of $100,000 until it hit $400,000. At that point, businessman Sam Boak placed his bid, which was not countered by the other registered bidders. A 10% buyer’s premium placed the final auction sale price at $440,000.
About 15 attended the auction and at least four were registered bidders.
“I drive by this everyday,” says Boak, president of Boak & Sons, a home improvement and commercial roofing, insulation, siding and window contractor, whose office is nearby. “My office is in Austintown, I have other properties in Austintown, and I believe in Austintown,” he said.
Boak said he had no immediate plans for the property should the deal close, but believes the site should prove attractive to redevelop.
“In time, something will come here and this corner needs to be something of value to the community,” he said. “It’s a fair price, and we’ll see what can be done with the building. You have to make a decision whether to keep the building and renovate it, or possibly demo[lish] it and put something else in its place.”
The 15,000-square-foot plaza had been owned by Master Park Plaza Investments, which paid $1.1 million for the property in May 2006.
This area of Austintown has gained attention since the opening of the $250 million Hollywood Gaming and Mahoning Valley Race Course last year, a thoroughbred racetrack that includes video lottery terminals, or VLTs.
Pictured: Retail plaza at the corner of state Route 46 and Silica Road in Austintown Township.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
