Smithfield’s Town Council began its Aug. 6 meeting with an hourlong closed session that included a discussion of two bids it received to purchase the town-owned Smithfield Times office at 228 Main St., but took no action upon returning to the public meeting other than to certify only the “disposition of publicly-held real property” was discussed.

According to Town Manager Michael Stallings, the council will likely wait until its committee meetings on Aug. 26 to pick a date for the public hearing state law requires the council to hold prior to voting to accept or reject either offer. The town also has the option of rejecting both bids.

The council voted on July 1 to solicit sealed offers for the 3,300-square-foot building. The two bids were opened and made public at a 4 p.m. July 31 meeting, an hour after the submittal deadline.

Jay and Amber Hassell, who co-own the Hamtown Mercantile multi-retailer venue across Main Street from the Times, submitted a bid of $400,000. Hallwood Enterprises CEO Mark Hall, who owns multiple commercial properties in town, submitted the other bid, at $325,000.

The Hassells’ written proposal to turn the space into an event center includes an “escalation” clause pledging to pay $10,000 above the highest competing bid, not to exceed $475,000.

Hall, in his written proposal, said he plans to reconfigure the building to accommodate multiple tenants such as boutique clothing and home decor retailers, art studios and professional offices.

Both offers are below the $425,000 the town paid Times Publisher Emeritus John Edwards for the building in 2020.

The town has recouped a portion of the cost over the past four years by leasing a portion of the building for $1,200 per month to Smithfield Newsmedia, which publishes the Times, Slice of Smithfield magazine and related digital products. Smithfield Newsmedia owner Steve Stewart purchased the newspaper, but not the real estate, from Edwards in 2019.

Stewart said he offered to pay the town appraised value for the property in February 2023 and, when asked by Stallings if he remained interested, confirmed the offer in February 2024. He said he missed the 3 p.m. July 31 bid deadline due to a family emergency that afternoon.

Stallings said last month that the town had the building independently appraised but declined to disclose the appraised dollar value on grounds that it could have negatively impacted the sealed bid process. Isle of Wight County collectively valued the building and quarter-acre lot at $397,000 during its 2023 reassessment of property values, according to the property’s listing on the county GIS map.