Remnants of Mat Maid still for sale

WASILLA — The Matanuska Maid dairy’s old bottle-making plant in downtown Palmer will remain on the chopping block and in the state’s hands, at least for now. The state had offered the building and the three acres it sits on for sale for its appraised value of $1,318,000. But a 1 p.m. deadline Monday for bids came and went with no takers. A state Division of Agriculture asset manager overseeing the sale said the lack of bids wasn’t a huge surprise. Between the tanking economy and it being the middle of the winter, the timing isn’t great for selling real estate, said Ray Nix. The state, however, plans to continue to offer the property for sale over the counter with the land going to the first person to meet the minimum $1.3 million price, he said. The plant, which was used to make plastic milk jugs and other bottles, is the largest remaining vestige of the now defunct creamery still in state hands. The company’s Anchorage plant, which churned out milk, yogurt and other products for decades, was previously sold in August for $1.5 million to an Anchorage businessman who said he plans to turn it into a heated self-storage facility. City of Palmer officials had previously expressed interest in buying the Palmer bottling facility as part of a bigger plan for a community center, but city manager Bill Allen said Monday the state’s asking price was too high. "I think it’s overvalued," he said. Allen said he still hopes to work out a deal with the state to obtain the property at a lower price. He said he hopes to pitch his plan to the state Board of Agriculture and Conservation at their next meeting in January.

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