Montgomery County legislators voted Tuesday to sell three parcels in the town of Glen, including the site of the former Poplars resort, to Buanno Holdings LLC for $185,000, ending several weeks of uncertainty that began with an auctioneer’s error.
Legislators met in a special session called by Chairman Thomas Quackenbush to resolve the situation that began with a mixup during a foreclosure sale in May. The three parcels were intended to be sold as one but ended up being sold separately. Officials from Buanno Holdings LLC were the successful bidders for the largest of the three parcels, and they thought they also had purchased two adjacent, smaller parcels when the original successful bidder failed to produce the required down payment.
The original resolution on Tuesday’s agenda called for the rejection of Buanno’s $135,000 bid for the largest parcel. District 1 Legislator Martin P. Kelly proposed an amendment bundling all three parcels together for a combined price of $185,000, with the stipulation that all back taxes be paid on all three parcels.
District 4 Legislator Ryan B. Weitz voted against both the amendment and the resolution.
“The big problem was that the auctioneer screwed up,” Weitz said. “There were multiple bidders bidding on it as if it was one parcel. I don’t know what’s changed in a month and a half.”
Weitz said the only fair solution would have been to solicit requests for proposals.
District 6 Legislator John M. Duchessi explained his positive vote at Tuesday’s session.
“I do not want to see the high bidder not get the land,” Duchessi said.
Ron Buanno attended Tuesday’s meeting, and said afterwards he and his family were pleased that the uncertainty is over.
“We didn’t want anything other than what we legitimately won,” he said. “It turned into a mess. We were just hoping to get the parcels we bid on.”
Buanno said he and other company officials are considering several potential uses for the property.
“We’re thinking about apartment buildings, and we’re looking into possible a restaurant or a mini-mart,” he said..”Buanno Trucking is our main company. We needed the property to expand our trucking business, and we’re trying to incorporate other money-making projects. We look forward to working with the community.”
