By James Massara
The now-former home of Checkmate Boats Inc. is under new ownership after an auction Thursday afternoon.
The main building and more than six acres of land on Ohio 4 were sold for $215,000 to an anonymous phone bidder, a steal of a purchase according to auctioneer Craig Miley.
Two brothers, Joe and Rich LoGiudice, currently own Checkmate and were renting the location from United Bank, a division of Park National Bank.
Joe LoGiudice said future plans include looking to find a new local location for Checkmate operations.
Lloyd Heinle, who worked at the facility in maintenance from 1963 when the business was Lakeway Sports Center to 2008, was present for the auction. He said he hopes whoever bought the property takes care of it and puts something useful for the community there.
The identity of the buyer was confidential due to the bids being placed over the phone. The buyer’s identity will become public once the property transfer makes its way through the court system.