AUGUSTA -- The city just bought itself some papermaking equipment, trucks, tools, and tissue paper -- all for $100.

But it won't own any of it for long.

The city's $100 bid was the winning, and only, bid for abandoned property inside the former Augusta Tissue mill, including the old equipment.

The city, in effect, purchased the equipment from itself at auction, as the city had already seized the riverside paper mill site, and its contents, for nonpayment of taxes.

The city was required to hold a public auction of the property inside the mill as part of the process of seizing the personal property, and City Manager William Bridgeo was authorized to spend up to the amount of taxes and interest owed the city by the previous owner.

Former mill owner Augusta Tissue LLC owed the city about $650,000 in taxes and interest, according to City Clerk Barbara Wardwell.

A large bid was not required, however: Only Bridgeo showed up for the sale at Augusta City Center Tuesday morning.

The property went in one lot on one bid.

"I've been to some weird things in my career as a city manager," Bridgeo said just before the auction started. "This is one of them."

Bridgeo said he'll likely sign a contract with Massachusetts-based Costello Dismantling this morning. Costello will demolish and level the site.

The contract entitles it to the salvage rights to the equipment at the mill.

Costello is expected to recoup its expenses by selling the steel and other materials.

If the city hadn't been the winning bidder in the auction, Bridgeo said, it would have voided the deal with Costello.

Among the items left behind when the mill closed abruptly in 2001 are old papermaking machines, trucks, cabinets, spare parts, tools, equipment from other mills and an air compressor system.

The city seized the real estate of the mill, known for many years as Statler Tissue, last week but couldn't take full control of the equipment until the auction.

"It's all done, we own it all," said Ralph St. Pierre, assistant city manager and finance director.

John Cressey, a project scientist with Lewiston-based Summit Environmental Consultants, who is working on the project for the city, said Costello intends to start work on the site today.

Keith Edwards -- 621-5647

kedwards@centralmaine.com