From the Midnight Sun blog:
After 13 years, the owners of Gin Mill are putting the Canton bar and a restaurant up for auction, owner Lester Reeder confirmed.
Reeder said business has been solid, but that it was time to call it quits.
If youve ever run your own bar, 20 years is enough, he said. Well love to see someone else do something great with it."
The bar -- which the Reeders actually bought in 1996 according to property records -- will be auctioned off October 20 at noon at its Boston street location by Jonathan Melnick Auctioneers.
Its base value is a little over $600,000, according to property records. The successful bidder would also pay deposits totaling $80,000 for the business, the real estate, and the liquor license, according to the auction online listing.
The Gin Mill, located in a building originally built in 1850, is two stories and has two bars, two dining rooms, and a lounge area in the rear. In the time the Reeders have owned it, they've sold it once before, only to buy it back two and a half years ago.
Lester Reeder says its been listed for sale for all that time, but no one had stepped with the right offer. Why sell now? "A lot of people tell you, you sell when things are good," he said.
He explained the auction as a business decision, meant to fast-track that process of finding "the right buyer." "In this economy, you have to be a little more aggressive," he said.
But, he added, that if a buyer doesn't agree to the right terms, they won't sell. "If it doesnt work out, well be here the next day," he said. "We can be here for 22 years.