At a four-hour event, Higginbotham Auctioneers of Lakeland, FL were unable to get potential buyers to go over a $500,000 bid Thursday for the vacant, 76-year-old, 12,718-sf former Ferran's Department Store building on Downtown Magnolia Street. Co-owners Mike and Becky Alberson and Bill and Beth Compton rejected the bid which equates to $39.31 per sf.

GlobeSt.com couldn't reach the owners to learn whether the 300-seat property will be re-listed with a broker or scheduled for another auction at a later date. The owners initially were asking $950,000 or $74.70 per sf prior to giving Higginbotham a chance to sell the two-story, rustic brick building.

Speculative reports had hinted the property might go for $1 million or a replacement cost of about $79 per sf, as GlobeSt.com reported March 6. Construction industry estimators at the time told GlobeSt.com the building would probably bring $635,000 or the equivalent hard construction cost of $50 per sf.