ASPEN —The state’s auction of assets at Little Annie’s Eating House on Tuesday morning drew many dozens of curiosity seekers who soaked up the carnival-barker atmosphere — but not many bidders for the hundreds of items on display.
Now the community’s attention turns to how quickly the restaurant can reopen, with the new operators saying they are aiming for Thursday.
The group that owns the 517 E. Hopkins Ave. building where Little Annie’s is housed, represented by property manager Lex Tarumianz, bought up everything in sight for the bulk price of $40,000. That bid was submitted before the auction of individual items got underway around 11:15 a.m. Under the rules for the event, the highest amount, either the bulk bid or the total of the individual-item bids, would triumph.
By 12:45 p.m., Grand Junction auctioneer “Buster” Cattles ended the proceeding after it became apparent that the total value of the remaining items for bid would not come close to the bulk bid that was being funded by the building-ownership group, whose managing partner is developer Nikos Hecht.
Annie’s was shuttered Oct. 15 by the state Department of Revenue because of $44,551 owed in sales taxes.
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