Published: July 24, 2008 11:59 am      

Mechanic Street property sells, Peskins doesn't

CUMBERLAND - Nobody raised a hand or nodded a head Wednesday to offer the minimum bid of $300,000 at a public auction of the former Peskins Building on Town Centre, although a Montgomery County man agreed to pay $350,000 for 130-138 N. Mechanic St.

Both properties are owned by Virginia-based developer Miguel Zavaleta and both were offered for bid by A.J. Billig & Co., Auctioneers of Baltimore during midday gatherings.

Zavaleta, operating as MG Enterprises Inc., had paid $350,000 for the Peskins property and $250,000 for the Mechanic Street complex in 2005, according to recorded deeds. By way of Cornerstone Enterprises LLC, Zavaleta is also the developer of 57 townhouses at Cornerstone Hill on the city's East Side.

At the Mechanic Street auction, which was conducted first, Cecil Clarke of North Potomac outbid George Mavrogiorgos of Silver Spring, the bids starting at $251,000 and then bouncing back and forth in increments of $1,000 and $4,000 until reaching the climax.

Clarke said he has similar properties elsewhere and this is his first in Cumberland. "I plan to upgrade the building, do some work, make it more attractive," Clarke said.

Mavrogiorgos said he too had invested in similar commercial buildings, but mostly in the suburban Baltimore and Washington areas.

"This is the farthest I have looked," Mavrogiorgos said. "Rents and sell prices are so low out here."

Indeed, Dan Billig, who auctioned both properties, told the group that the property tax of $5,300 for the Peskins Building would be 10 times that in Baltimore.

Billig said there had been substantial pre-bid interest for both properties. "A lot of the people took a look at the buildings beforehand," he said, just before the first auction. "You never know. Some come back to bid, some don't."

The Mechanic Street building has six office spaces, five of which are occupied and generating $42,324 rental income annually, according to the auctioneers. It is directly across the street from the Cumberland Fire Department.

Contact Michael A. Sawyers at msawyers@times-news.com.