WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — A local contractor Wednesday purchased a White Oaks resident seized by the town through tax title foreclosure.
Jerry Smith of Williamstown was the successful bidder in a two-person auction, bidding $15,500 for 87 White Oaks Road on Wednesday morning in the Selectmen's Meeting Room.
Town Finance Director Janet Saddler conducted the auction, which she started at $40,000. Hearing no bids, she dropped the asking price in $5,000 increments.
When her proposed opening bid reached $20,000, she informed the bidders she would not accept a price lower than $14,000, which elicited a bid at that level from Smith. His opponent raised the price to $15,000 before Smith was the last man standing at $15,500.
"I purchase properties, I add value and then I resell them," Smith said afterward, explaining his motivation for the purchase.
Smith said he has rehabilitated "six to eight" properties in Williamstown in the last 20 years.
He said he did not know how much rehabbing or rebuilding would be necessary at the property. He did have a chance to see the interior of the house prior to Wednesday's sale.
"That will become clear within the next couple of weeks, after I get some estimates," he said. "The house has suffered neglect because of no maintenance, no heat. It's been sitting for, I think, as long as five or six years."
Despite the high number of single-family homes currently for sale in the town, Smith was optimistic about the prospects of a return on his investment.
"It is a market in which it's a lot of work," he said. "It's not like TV. … You can't do it in half an hour.
"It's good for everybody. It helps the neighborhood, helps the community, helps put a higher value on the house at the end of renovation."
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Williamstown Fire Committee Talks Station Project Cuts, Truck Replacement
By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Prudential Committee on Wednesday signed off on more than $1 million in cost cutting measures for the planned Main Street fire station.
Some of the "value engineering" changes are cosmetic, while at least one pushes off a planned expense into the future.
The committee, which oversees the Fire District, also made plans to hold meetings over the next two Wednesdays to finalize its fiscal year 2025 budget request and other warrant articles for the May 28 annual district meeting. One of those warrant articles could include a request for a new mini rescue truck.
The value engineering changes to the building project originated with the district's Building Committee, which asked the Prudential Committee to review and sign off.
In all, the cuts approved on Wednesday are estimated to trim $1.135 million off the project's price tag.
The biggest ticket items included $250,000 to simplify the exterior masonry, $200,000 to eliminate a side yard shed, $150,000 to switch from a metal roof to asphalt shingles and $75,000 to "white box" certain areas on the second floor of the planned building.
The white boxing means the interior spaces will be built but not finished. So instead of dividing a large space into six bunk rooms and installing two restrooms on the second floor, that space will be left empty and unframed for now.
The Charter Review Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously to endorse an amended version of the compliance provision it drafted to be added to the Town Charter. click for more
Developer David Traggorth asked the trustees to make the contribution from its coffers to help unlock an additional $5.4 million in state funds for the planned 54-unit apartment building at the south end of the Cable Mills site.
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The donors, who wish to remain anonymous, say the gift reflects their desire to not only support Williams but also President Maud S. Mandel's strategic vision and plan for the college.
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Neighbors of a proposed subdivision off Summer Street last week asked the Planning Board to take a critical look at the project, which the residents say is out of scale to the neighborhood. click for more