J.R. Bills, owner of Mountain States Mortgage Center, 1333 E. 9400 South, has offered $1.5 million to purchase the historic McCune Mansion, 200 N. Main.
Bills was out of town Tuesday when the property was put up for auction by Tate/Brubaker Real Estate and Auction, but she was represented by Gene B. Jensen, vice president.Even though the money was tendered by Jensen, Brent and Chris Pack, principals in Pack Associates, a company that has been using the McCune Mansion for wed-ding receptions and parties, have the right to refuse the bid.
Mac Brubaker said the Packs don't know if they will sell the mansion and adjacent land for that price, and they have three days to make a decision. Brubaker said there is a possibility the buyer and seller can negotiate a price.
Brubaker issued papers to several prospective bidders, and they went to separate rooms in the mansion to outline their proposals in a silent auction. When they returned to the main bidding room, Bru-baker said two of the bids were so close that he started a verbal auction with a $1.4 million minimum.
The bid increased to $1.45 million, and then Bills' bid held firm. Jensen didn't comment on the ultimate use of the building if the sale is consummated.
Asked why the verbal auction was held after the silent auction, Brubaker said it is common practice when some bids are close, and it gives the bidders a chance to verify each other's value of the property.
The mansion, with its 16,868 square feet of floor space on 1.04 acres, was listed for several months at $2.5 million by Greg Gunn, an associate broker for Consolidated Realty. Because the owners were interested in a quick sale and there apparently were no takers, Gunn brought in Brubaker to conduct an auction.
Brubaker said it was difficult to place a price on the mansion, which is listed on the state and national historic registers, because there is virtually nothing to use as a comparison.
The red sandstone building has been owned for eight years by McCune Associates and one of its general partners, Pack Associates, which is owned by Brent Pack and some of his family members and used for receptions and parties.
Built in 1901, the mansion was designed for Alfred W. McCune and his wife, Elizabeth. McCune was born in India and later converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His father was a British Army officer.
He became a successful railroad contractor in the West and later had mining interests. In 1888, the McCunes settled in Salt Lake City, and he acquired a controlling interest in the Consolidated Railway and Power Co.
In 1920, the family moved to Los Angeles and gave the building to the LDS Church. It housed the McCune School of Art and Music until 1958 when Brigham Young University moved its Salt Lake Center there.
In 1973 it was acquired by a private company that consisted of some of the people involved with McCune Associates, according to Chris Pack.