Former Pittsfield Burger Kings Sold At Auction
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The new owner of the Merrill Road Burger King on the left signs the paperwork with attorney Peter Puciloski, who is representing TD Bank. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city's two former Burger King restaurants sold for more than $2 million on Wednesday but both new owners are mum on details about the future.
The properties on Merrill Road and First Street were auctioned after TD Bank foreclosed on former owner Richard George, who abruptly closed the restaurants in June.
The Merrill Road location sold for $1.275 million after nearly 20 minutes of bidding.
The new owner refused to even provide his name to media as he walked to his black Audi following the auction. Auctioneers said they could not provide even a name without the new owner's consent.
That bid opened at $500,000 with more than a dozen registered to bid but only a few actually wagering.
The Merrill Road property consists of more than 5.8 acres of land, was constructed in 1979 and renovated in 1999 and features a walk-in cooler, kitchen, seating space for more than 129 and two storage rooms. Inside, shoes were sticking to the floor and Burger King items littered the countertops in the kitchen.
The auction sale was about a half-million dollars more than the $705,900 assessed value. The new owner will also need to pay back about $40,000 in back taxes.
The First Street property sold for $850,000 after the bids opened at $250,000. The winner of that bid also refused to provide his name while he was signing the final paperwork.
The First Street property, also filled with former Burger King items and in need of cleaning, is assessed at $552,800. That property consists of .69 acres of land containing the 3,747 square-foot building. It features a commercial kitchen, drive-thru, kitchen with walk-in cooler and seating for 99 people. It was first constructed in 1978.
Dozens of people registered for the auction there, too, but the bidding centered around only three. After two short breaks, the bid came down to two men before finalizing at $825,000. The new owner will have to pay about $31,000 in back taxes.
The new owners were required to provide 10 percent of the bid and close on the property in 45 days.
The auction was conducted by Thomas Saturley and Michael Carey of Tranzon Auction Properties. They later were to auction George's third Burger King, located in Lenox.
Tags: auction, fast-food, foreclosures, franchise,
