CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield County Commissioners have authorized their solicitor to investigate the purchase of the property where Ethan’s Café/The Angry Bean and Rick Evans Photography were formerly located on North Third Street in downtown Clearfield.
The restaurant/coffee shop was destroyed by a fire the night of Feb. 9. The fire also displaced the photography studio next door and several second-floor apartment tenants. Damage was estimated at $750,000, according to previous GantDaily.com reports.
Following a brief executive session at Tuesday’s regular meeting, Commissioner Chairperson Joan Robinson-McMillen announced the commissioners had recently received a letter from Dustin Quigley, who would like them to consider purchasing his property located at 112-124 N. Third St. The property, according to Quigley, has been filled, graded and is ready to be paved.
In his letter, Quigley offered the property to the commissioners “as is” for $125,000; if they would like it paved, he offered the property for $150,000. Quigley requested that the commissioners contact him to further discuss the matter.
After reading the letter, Robinson-McMillen solicited input from the board. Both Commissioners John A. Sobel and Mark B. McCracken wanted to authorize County Solicitor Kim Kesner to further explore the offer with Quigley and surrounding landowners to see if an agreement could be negotiated.
Kesner explained that county code requires the commissioners to complete a specific process before purchasing real estate. He said it involves conferring with the chief assessor and a licensed real estate broker, or someone who maintains an office for the sale of real estate within the county. Kesner said the purpose is to investigate the appropriateness of the price and the suitability of the property for the county’s use.
The commissioners then voted, 3-0, to authorize Kesner to initiate the investigative process as required by county code.
When asked, the commissioners declined to give any specific details so far as what the property would be used for if purchased. Sobel said the commissioners are currently exploring all available options.