Columnist Susan Snyder: Treasures to be had at town auction

Friday, Aug. 24, 2001 | 9:27 a.m.

Susan Snyder's column appears Fridays, Sundays and Tuesdays. Reach her at snyder@vegas.com or 259-4082.

Psst, buddy.

Wanna buy a truck stop?

How about a lot with no local zoning codes?

Why, it's enough to make developers trample each other in a rush to Goldfield, a town of 350 people 185 miles north of Las Vegas.

At least, that's what Esmeralda County officials hope. They plan to auction off about 60 parcels of land during the second annual Goldfield Millennium Rush Festival this weekend.

The lots, most of which are vacant, are held hostage by delinquent taxes. Bids will start with the amount of taxes owed plus 25 percent of the plot's assessed value, said Linda Toner, the county's legal secretary and festival planner.

(Told you the town is small.)

Minimum bids will range from $300-$30,000, with most in the neighborhood of $2,000-$3,000. Current owners can pay off the debts right up to bidding time at noon Saturday, Toner said.

"But most of these have no last-known owner. Some of these things have been off the tax rolls for almost 100 years," she said.

Goldfield was "discovered" in 1902 when four men located three gold claims in what was then called the Grandpa Mining District, according to a historical account written by Patty Cafferata, Esmeralda district attorney.

Goldfield's mining and population peaked from 1904 to 1910, with $11 million in gold pulled from the mines in 1906 alone. But in 1912 they produced only $5 million. Six old mining claims are up for bid this year.

"You can mine or not mine. But you own the mineral rights," Cafferata said.

The festival opened today with bidder registration at 9 a.m. in the county courthouse. But bidders may register until auction time on Saturday, Toner said.

"We're not going to tell anyone 'no,' " she said.

Saturday's festivities include a pancake breakfast at 7 a.m., a parade at 10 a.m. and food and arts and crafts vendors throughout the day. The land auction begins at noon.

Those who don't want land can buy items such as old documents, steam radiators and claw-foot bath tubs that will also be raffled or auctioned. A street dance begins at 7 p.m.

Sunday starts with a "Miner's Breakfast" at 8 a.m.

All three days will include tours of the Goldfield Hotel, which didn't sell when put up for auction last year.

"We had a couple of big casino (officials) from Las Vegas here. But when the hotel came up, it fell silent and both of the gentlemen turned their backs," Toner said.

The four-story hotel, built in 1908, isn't up for bid this year because a title search turned up an old paperwork snafu, she said. It could return to the auction block next year. Starting bid: $426,000.26.

Goldfield gained a handful of new residents, a new antique shop and a new deli after last year's auction. A handful of retirees also moved in, and a construction company is considering it, Toner said.

"We were a dying town," she said. "That's why we had the festival. We had to save ourselves."

So if you're in the mood for a little prospectin', head north on U.S. 95 about 185 miles and stop in Goldfield. You might find a new place to love.

And you might be able to pick up the old Coaldale Junction Truck Stop and its 40 acres for a song -- as long as you start singing to the tune of $30,000.