ABSOLUTE AUCTION – 2 Office Buildings in Lake City, FL

Description

ABSOLUTE AUCTION

Highest Bidder Buys, Regardless of Price! 

2 Office Buildings in Lake City, FL

Address:  768 W. Duval St, Lake City, FL

Columbia County Tax Parcel: 00-00-00-12494-000

 This 3,197 SF historic home converted for office use is full of charm and conveniently located right on US 90. Perfect location with great signage on a 0.79± acre lot. Access is enhanced by the corner lot on West Duval St (US 90) & NW McFarlane Ave. Original wood floors with lots of windows and stained glass create a welcoming appeal and allow for lots of natural light. Beautiful trees provide ample shady private parking. 

A fascinating piece of Lake City history.

We have pieced together some of the remarkable stories of the family who owned this building as their home, from several sources cited below.

1. Columbia County Historical Society’s book The History of Colombia County (by Edward F Keuchel) 
2. Interview with Rick Paul, a good historian and descendant of AG Paul and the AG Paul family who owned the home from 1923, to the best of our records. 
3. Lake City Historian Billy Wheeler 
4. Larry Wurn, present owner.

From Rick Paul – descendant of AG Paul: 

AG Paul owned the largest sawmill and logging operation in the Midwest on the Mississippi River for decades. He did a significant amount of logging throughout the late 1800s. As stocks of lumber began to diminish, he started looking at other areas of the country to run his industry. 

To assist with his logging and sawmill operation, Paul also owned his own railroad. People who owned railroads such as Paul granted courtesy to other railroad owners by allowing them to hook their cars and travel the country. In a trip to Jacksonville, Florida around 1885 to 1890, the train stopped at Watertown to take on water – the town was named for that endeavor. Stepping out of his Pullman car, Paul noticed the huge volume of tall pine trees throughout the area – and the seed was planted for eventually moving into the area.

Around 1895, a Category 5 hurricane devastated much of North Central Florida, laying thousands of our huge pine trees on the ground. Acting quickly, Paul packed up his entire Wisconsin-based sawmill operation and moved everything to the town outside of Lake City called Watertown. Paul bought what is essentially the Osceola National Forest and started his new operation in Watertown.

From History of Colombia County:

Paul owned, or had access to has access to hundreds of thousands of acres of timber in the area. He was fabulously wealthy. With 1,500 workers, he owned the area banks and even minted his own money. You can learn more from the inserts from the book attached. 

When Mr. Paul wanted a vacation or a break, he hooked his Pullman car up and took his family and friends to places like San Francisco for vacation! Needless to say, he lived a very different life than most residents of Watertown or Lake City at the time.

LC Historian Billy Wheeler told the present owner (Larry Wurn) that the AG Paul Home being auctioned was originally built by Max and Daisy Brown, in 1919. Mr. Paul bought the home from the Browns around 1923, and it remained in the Paul family for 65 years until Alexander G Paul III sold it to the orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Charles Nach, in 1988. 

Because of the extensive geography and variety of his patients, Dr. Nach had to be a generalist, something rarely seen in orthopedic surgeons today. He would operate on spines, arms, knees, thumbs – virtually any broken bones. Professional Touch Physical Therapy, owned by Larry Wurn (the present owner) moved in across the street from Dr. Nach to help rehabilitate his patients. When Dr. Nach left town in 1995, Wurn purchased the property along with one across the street to continue his physical therapy practices. Now with a dozen locations in the USA and England, Mr. Wurn has decided to ‘reluctantly part’ with a property that has been part of the lake City landscape for nearly 100 years. “I feel lucky to have owned and cherished that building for over 20 of those years,” Wurn said.

Address:  157 SW McFarlane Ave, Lake City, FL

Columbia County Tax Parcel: 00-00-00-12498-000

Great commercial office building for owner occupant or investor. Conveniently located on McFarlane Ave, just 1 block off of US-90 (W. Duval St), this 1,424 sf building may be combined with the neighboring property we are also selling to offer Hwy 90 frontage and a combined 1 ac± and 4,621 sf. 2 car carport next to building. Currently leased for $1,200/mth to RS&H, a national engineering firm.

Open House Date:

Monday, March 12th from 10AM - 2PM

Auction Date:

Wednesday, March 21st at 11AM

Preview & Registration from 10AM

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE BIDDERS PACKET

Real Estate Terms & Conditions: To register to bid, you must present a Cashier's Check, Certified Check or Cash in the amount of $2,500, made payable to Paul Newell, Attorney, Escrow Account. Winning Bidder must provide the balance of 10% as a Binder Deposit by check immediately after being announced the winning bidder, with the balance due on or before April 20th, 2018. Not subject to financing. 10% Buyer's Premium. Insurable title to the property is guaranteed.  Should you not be the successful bidder, your check will be promptly returned to you.

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