Land auction is no sale

Auctioneers and prospective bidders gathered alongside Route 17-B near Fosterdale for the June 28 auction of a 336-acre parcel of woodland. About 20 people, some of them curious neighbors and others gaging the local real estate market, gathered in stifling heat to watch about five minutes of discrete bidding, which opened at $1 million and rose to $1.8 million. Realtor Gibson McKean said the offer was the highest ever made for the property, but owner Charles Papp, who watched the proceedings from a nearby car, refused the bid. Papp said he has no immediate alternative plans for the property and was not surprised by the bidding. “I’m not surprised by anything. I take life as it is,” he said.