DuPage Co. forest district auction nets $58,000

A 10-year-old pickup equipped with a snowplow blade was the top moneymaker at the DuPage County Forest Preserve's recent auction of surplus items and lost property.

The truck sold for $6,400 and was among 356 items that netted the district $58,000 at the July 25 auction. The money goes into the district's vehicle replacement fund.

Forest preserve commissioners were told of the results at Tuesday's board meeting.

Fleet Services Manager John Walton said another pickup sold for $5,000 and a mobile mechanical lift that can reach 45 feet in the air was also sold for that amount.

"The biggest surprise was a Hobart Industrial Kitchen Mixer that went for $600," he said.

Some items were sold for as little as $1, but that still keeps them out of area landfills, Walton said. A boat that was found abandoned in a forest preserve parking lot several years ago went for $450.

The proceeds dipped by nearly half of what the district took last year when scores of items from millionaire industrialist Brooks McCormick's St. James Farm were also auctioned off. However, Walton expects more money next year because there will be nine or 10 more district vehicles up for bid in 2010 than there were this year. Attendance was also down, which Walton attributes to the economy and fewer items this year. Only 224 bidders registered this year compared to the 300-plus the auction attracted last year, he said.

The district has been holding these property auctions for more than 20 years. District employees serve as auctioneers to save on fees charged by professional auction houses. Professional auctioneers charge up to 15 percent of the proceeds, Walton said.

This year, Commissioner Joe Cantore served as an auctioneer and was invited to do it again next year.

"I'm more than willing to embarrass myself if it will save the district some money," Cantore said.