Annual city auction scheduled for Saturday

BY CINDY TOOPES COURIER STAFF WRITER

June 24, 2008 11:51 pm

— OTTUMWA — Bicycles, cars, power tools, generators, chain saws, computers and more.
What’s a city purchasing agent supposed to do with all this “stuff?” Sell it, of course.
Mark Sims is the city’s purchasing agent and he oversees the annual city auction. This year’s sale will be 10 a.m. Saturday at Bridge View Center, Section A.
Most auction items will be inside, except for vehicles. Sims said Monday the city will even sell some buses from 10-15 Transit.
Several other vehicles are on the list but this year the two-wheelers are in the lead.
“We must have at least 80 bicycles,” Sims said.
The city’s purchasing agent said he started the auctions in 1995 and the sales were held at the former Ottumwa Coliseum.
“For the first few sales, the coliseum was full from the inside to the outside,” Sims said. “Now the auctions aren’t as big as they were. We’ve cleaned house.”
The “stuff” they will sell Saturday is more than 100 items from several city departments and the Ottumwa school district.
Sims smiles when he thinks about the money helping taxpayers. Whatever the school district and the city gain from the auction is that much money taxpayers won’t have to cover.
The school district has refrigerators to sell. Some are commercial stainless steel and a couple are for a home. Desks, electrical wiring, computers, lights, stools and vehicles are also for sale.
“One of the strange things about auctions is that the things you think are going to bring in money a lot of times don’t,” Sims said. “And, the items you think won’t bring money, a lot of times do.”
Jim Kosman, Roger Clingan and Todd Carroll will handle the auctioneering duties, according to the city’s advertisement in Monday’s Courier.
“Jim calls the auction the ‘annual inventory reduction and excess inventory sale,’” Sims added.
The date of the annual auction varies a bit. This year it’s in June because the Bridge View Center was booked in May.
The city also advertises the auction on GO-TV, cable Channel 6.
“[The auction] is usually really well-attended,” Sims added.
Cindy Toopes can be reached at (641) 683-5376 or via e-mail at cindy@ottumwacourier.com.