The federal government has rejected a local nonprofit’s $540,000 bid to buy Monpelier’s former post office and federal office building and plans to put the flood-damaged property up for auction again.
The 87 State Street Local Development Corporation was the high bidder when a federal auction for the downtown building ended August 6. But the U.S. General Service Administration, which owns the building, declined to accept the offer, according to the local group, which announced the decision Friday.
Once again, the future is uncertain for the prominent downtown Montpelier property that has been vacant since a July 2023 flood. Local officials and community organizations have spent more than a year exploring ways to redevelop the building, which occupies a large parcel a few blocks from the Statehouse but carries potentially costly environmental and flood-related liabilities.
The development corporation intends to bid again, according to a statement released by Jon Copans, its treasurer.
“Our goal was never to be the long-term owner, nor to make any profit from this property,” Copans said. “Instead the LDC has been set up to serve as the necessary bridge between federal divestment and a revitalized property.”
The GSA did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
The three-story, 70,000-square-foot building at 87 State Street occupies 1.6 acres a few blocks from the Statehouse. GSA opened bidding at $500,000 in June. The agency had previously sought roughly $2.4 million for the property.
The local development corporation estimates that investigating and cleaning up the environmental hazards could cost between $1.8 and $3 million.
The nonprofit contends those costs, along with floodproofing requirements and challenging redevelopment economics, reduce what a buyer can reasonably pay for the property. Ben Doyle, president of the corporation’s board, called GSA’s decision “a lose-lose decision” in a statement on Friday, saying another auction would delay redevelopment while leaving federal taxpayers responsible for the building.
“By failing to recognize the significant environmental and flood-related liabilities we have worked so hard to document, GSA is placing a higher value on a hoped-for price than on a real bid and a realistic path toward redevelopment,” Doyle said.
Doyle told Seven Days the government’s actions are hurting Montpelier instead of helping the city recover and revitalize.
“At a bare minimum, their job is to help steward taxpayer funding, and they’re doing a lousy job,” he said.
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