Motorcycles, dining chairs, stacks of liquor by the case, electronics, machinery, racks of bicycles, and even a Pegasus painting are just some of the merchandise available at the Connecticut State Surplus auction Saturday.
The auction begins at 9:30 a.m. at the rear of the Department of Motor Vehicles at 60 State St. in Wethersfield. Photo album
All of the auction items were confiscated by the state. Proceeds from the auction go to Connecticut’s General Fund. John McKay, spokesman for the Department of Administrative Services, said these events often bring in about $40,000.
Clearing House Commercial of Wethersfield co-sponsors state property auctions, which are held four to six times a year, McKay said.
“We do them when we accumulate enough inventory to make it worth everyone’s while,” McKay said.
Interested buyers can only use cash, bank or certified checks as payment. Personal checks and credit cards are not accepted.
Montville resident Joe Calash says he never misses an auction, and resells anything of value at a profit on eBay.
“Today I’m looking for aircraft parts,” he said. “I’m thinking they’ll be pretty valuable online.”
Susan Paulnitz, of Marlborough, helps organize auctions with Clearing House Commercial. She said she expects a fairly busy Saturday morning.
“Once the press gets hold of the auction and it makes the news on TV, it tends to get pretty busy around here,” she said. “I think the coolest thing we have this time is the big screen TV.”
The TV is a new, 52-inch Samsung LCD television. A few of other big ticket items include various motorcycles, a 21-foot Stingray boat with a trailer, guitars, and a children’s all-terrain vehicle.
Marc Richard of South Windsor is a state surplus auction first-timer. He brought his two children to scour through the racks of bicycles.
“I saw something about the auction on the news and thought, ‘What the heck, I have the day off.’ Everything here looks a lot better than I expected,” he said as his son anxiously tugged at his shirt while eyeing the rack of bicycles.
“Looking around though, I wonder how or why anyone stole some of these things or how they came to be confiscated,” he said, pointing to a triple set of stainless sink and refrigerator units with built-in hand sanitizer dispensers.
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