May 20. By Dave Vieser. The sale of the Cornelius Public Works building on Starcreek Drive, which could have generated $671,050 for the town, has fallen apart. A new “upset bidding process” will be held in the near future to sell the property.

The town had declared the 4,320 square foot building surplus in 2018. The Town Board then approved an offer for the site of $570,000 at the Jan. 21, 2020 board meeting which started the upset bid process. At their March 2, 2020 meeting, the commissioners awarded the property to Michael L. Crum, whose final  offer was $671,050.

However, upon performing due diligence, Crum decided not to move forward with the purchase of the building, according to Town Manager Andrew Grant.

“For garage-type facilities, such as this building, there are oil-water separators that are onsite to ensure that when vehicles are washed off the oils are captured by this piece of equipment,” Grant said.

“While the Town has no indication that there was an issue with the oil-water separator, a phase II environmental analysis will be performed to ensure that the equipment is functioning properly,” he said.

Upon completion of the analysis, the Town will likely begin the upset bid process again.

The upset bid process is a procedure used in only a few states, and is designed to bring the highest possible price to a municipality. The public bidding aims to push that price closest to the market value of the property.

If a prospective buyer decides to abandon his offer, a completely new bidding process must be held, unlike competitive bidding where the next responsive bidder could be selected.