The Bureau of Land Management held its first oral auction in Clark County since November 2007 with the 2nd-largest land offering since November 2005 on Thursday. On the block were 28 parcels totaling more than 440 acres, most in the southwest area of the Las Vegas valley.

The Review-Journal’s Jennifer Robison reports that the largest parcel, nearly 250 acres near Hollywood and Cheyenne, failed to sell and there were a few incidents that made the proceedings interesting.

The federal Bureau of Land Management held a major land auction Thursday at its northwest Las Vegas field office, unloading more than 160 acres of property, much of it around Blue Diamond Road and in other parts of the southwest. All told, the land sale brought in nearly $24 million, though not without a few twists and turns in front of a standing-room-only crowd of more than 100.

 

An investor got into a bidding war with a big homebuilder. Some parcels went for twice their market value, while others squeaked through with just one bidder at their base asking price. And the biggest plot of all — some 250 acres in northeast Las Vegas — went unclaimed altogether. There was no shortage of action for observers and bidders alike.

According to Robison, the BLM plans another auction in May or June, meaning builders and developers are once again confident enough in the future to be interested in purchasing raw land.