Commercial real estate agency Crexi posted the listing, slating the property for auction Oct. 10-12. The opening bid is listed at $750,000, and participants must pay a $10,000 deposit to register for the online auction. Berkeley Capital Advisors, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the auction broker.
Crexi listing agent Alexsis Aguirre told The Dispatch bidders can submit applications through the online listing and must pass a financial background check, including the deposit, before Oct. 10 to participate. Once the auction begins, bidders can see all active bids on the property.
“It opens up on Oct. 10, that morning,” Aguirre said. “You can see all the bids come in real time.”
Seritage SRC Finance owns the property at 2308 Highway 45 North next to Bargain Hunt. The Kmart closed in November 2018. According to a press release issued at the time by Sears Holdings — owner of both Sears and Kmart — the Columbus location was one of 46 properties the company closed that year.
In the auction listing, Crexi is marketing the 117,082 square-foot property on 14.86 acres as a prime location for redevelopment.
“The vacant box is 412 (feet) by 282.2 (feet), creating an ample amount of frontage for retail redevelopment,” the listing reads. “This will give investors flexibility when backfilling the center, allowing them to subdivide the space in a way that is suitable for prospective retailers.”
The listing also notes the property is near several high-traffic stores along Highway 45, such as Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Belk and T.J. Maxx.
The property sits in a “Qualified Opportunity Zone,” which is a federal designation that would offer developers capital gains tax credits for investing in the site.
Seritage SRC leadership did not respond to calls made by The Dispatch by press time.
Lowndes County tax records estimate the property’s value at $3.1 million.
This is the second large parcel on Highway 45 put up for online auction in recent years. The Hull Group, based in Alabama, bought Leigh Mall for $3.5 million through a Ten-X auction in October 2019.
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