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LOCK HAVEN -- On Monday morning, the Clinton County Board of Commissioners opened bids for five repository properties.
These are properties that have seen previous owners go delinquent on property taxes, have been through both tax sales (Upset Sale and Judicial Sale) and did not sell. They were then made available for bid.
"We do this three times a year… in February, June and then October. This is the most we have had in a while. It is five unique properties with no competing bids. The county treasurer will have to confirm that these people do not have back taxes. A person bidding cannot have delinquent properties of their own, but they will not have to pay back the taxes previously owed on these properties," commissioner Robert "Pete" Smeltz said.
"We just had the judicial sale, about 64 total properties, and these are the ones that had received no bids," explained treasurer Michelle Kunes.
"The county does not 'own' these properties on the repository," said Smeltz. "It is still going to be the responsibility of the last owner for maintenance of these properties until the sale is complete."
The minimum bid is $500 per property, plus filing fees, he explained. The minimum bid for a mobile home is $100.
"The amount of the check submitted must be reviewed to be sure that all fees were correctly added. Nothing is final until bids are reviewed by our solicitor and the commissioners award the bids through approval of a resolution. These are not yet considered sold," said county clerk, Jann Meyers.
– A Renovo property, at 152 Sixth St. received a high bid of $551 from Ray Jeremiah Wilson, with a total of $748.66 remitted.
– A South Renovo borough property at 321 Pennsylvania Ave. received an identical bid from Darrell McDermit, Jr.
– A third Renovo area property, at 159 14th St., received a high bid in the amount of $500 from Ryan Adam Mooney with a total of $697 remitted.
– A Lock Haven property, 213 Sanctuary Blvd., Mountain Haven Village, received a bid of $1,250 from Avis Investors, LLC, of Bellefonte, with a total of $1,462 remitted.
– The fifth property, a mobile home at 12 Dinadan Drive in Mill Hall, Camelot Estates, Bald Eagle Township, received a high bid of $100 from Jennifer Henry, and with fees, a total of $200 remitted.
THURSDAY MEETING AT COURTHOUSE
Meyers reminded attendees that the board's voting session Thursday will be held at the Clinton County Courthouse, Courtroom 1, at 10:30 a.m. to honor the courthouse's 150th anniversary.
Refreshments will be available, and local attorney Justin Houser will be on hand to give a brief history on the building. Clinton County President Judge Craig Miller will give opening remarks.
"We will have a limited amount of time, so I don't foresee any big debates. We will save certain agenda items for the following week. It will be a good time to look at the repairs of the courthouse and all the work that is going on there," Smeltz said.
The public is welcome to attend, he said.
The county will also host a Candidates' Night on Monday, Feb. 11, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the second floor conference room of the Piper Building, 2 Piper Way, Lock Haven.
"This is for people out there who want to run for any office. They can come and get important information," said Meyers. "There will be packets of information available and we are trying to get a list of people planning to attend."
The purpose of this meeting is to provide potential candidates information on everything they need to know to run for a wide range of local offices.
The agenda includes a review of the election calendar, a review of petitions, statements of financial interest, filing fees and cross filing. A review of campaign finance forms, voter lists and polling place guidelines will also be discussed.
"If you are considering running or if you are supporting someone who is thinking about running, you should plan to attend," said Maria Boileau, county voter registrar.