by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
In a five-minute auction, Mark Florans of New York-based Platinum Management Services bought the old Job Corps Building in Springfield Wednesday for $1.5 million. Eight potential buyers showed for the auction which was held at the Main Library and all were required to bring a $75,000 deposit should they offer a winning bid. Florans opened the bidding at $100,000 and was only contested by two other bidders.
Joe Crenshaw of the General Services Administration’s Property Disposal Division was the auctioneer and said Florans would be told the building’s appraisal value only if he asked and only after closing. While Florans was signing his paperwork with Elizabeth Dawson of the GSA, Louise DeSpain of Springfield Preservation and Revitalization handed Florans her card and said, “We have a lot to talk about.” Florans said he only saw the building for the first time Tuesday and his company isn’t sure what they intend to do with the building.