JAY – The Board of Selectpersons moved unanimously to sell a town-owned lot at the corner of Route 133 and Hyde Road Monday evening, after receiving a bid of $40,061 for the property.
The board issued a public request for bids on the property, which consists of two acres of land and a barn, at their Sept. 8 meeting. Bids were accepted until 4 p.m., Sept. 22, at which time the bidding process was closed. Selectperson Justin Merrill opened the single bid the town received at a meeting held later that evening.
The bid, submitted by Antoine St. Pierre of Jay, was $61 more than the $40,000 minimum set by the board on Sept. 8. The town had previously assessed the property at approximately $40,000.
The property was acquired by the town in conjuncture with the Maine Department of Transportation’s Rt. 133/Hyde Road intersection project. The town expended $200,000 in relation to that project, with $51,000 of that going to purchase the property in order to secure better sight lines for traffic waiting to turn off Hyde onto the state road. Some of the property purchased by the town will be retained to keep those sight lines open.
Of the $40,061, a total of $5,800 will be transferred into the accounts that were utilized to secure the sale. Those include legal and advertising accounts, as well as some Highway Department work to remove a Rt. 133 access point. The remainder of the funds will be transferred into the undesignated fund.
As part of the process laid out in the town’s request for bids, St. Pierre will have until the end of October to close the sale.
The board will not meet on Oct. 13, which is Columbus Day, but will meet on Oct. 27. Residents should also not that Sept. 25 is Employee Appreciation Day, and the town office will be closed between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
