Bids Rejected for Renovo’s Mills Park Housing

LOCK HAVEN – The Clinton County Housing Authority this week rejected all bids for the sale of the authority’s Mills Park housing complex along Huron Avenue in Renovo.

The 27 units of public housing are being emptied out in anticipation of their sale. Two bids from prospective purchasers had been opened on Oct. 31. The authority board met on Tuesday of this week and decided to accept neither. Instead, according to authority executive director Jeff Rich, the authority will secure the services of a commercial realtor to market the units.

The highest bid received was $326,000 from Micah Clausen of Castanea; a second bid was received from The Band, LLC of Silverdale, WA, the amount $245,000. Rich had noted earlier that HUD (The Department of Housing and Urban Development) had set a minimum $660,000 fair market value price.

The local housing authority, faced with Renovo vacancy rates higher than allowed by HUD, has been working in recent years to sell the Mills Park acreage. There is expected to be a demand for rental housing in western Clinton County if and when the proposed $800 million Renovo Energy Center project enters its construction phase. Project backers say that could occur as early as sometime later next year if all permitting approvals, power grid interconnect issues and financing matters are in order.