Wednesday, March 31, 2004
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Wednesday, March 31, 2004 |
| Want one of Fayette’s old vehicles? Buy county surplus online at eBay By JOHN THOMPSON Fayette County’s government is moving into the giant thrift store in cyberspace next week, as many of the county’s surplus vehicles will appear for sale on eBay. Finance Director Mark Pulliam got the idea from one of his staff members who saw a report on television that the city of Marietta had decided to auction of their vehicles on the 21st century version of the Trading Post. “The people in Marietta got a lot more than they would at a traditional auction,” Pulliam said. So, Pulliam signed up for an eBay account for Fayette County, and should have several of the county’s vehicles on the Web site next week. He added the county will be running a notice on the public access cable channel, so Fayette residents will have a heads-up on the vehicles. If the vehicle auction is successful, Pulliam said the county may consider putting more equipment out for bid, including old radio equipment. Pulliam is hoping eBay will draw more competition for the county’s older equipment. “A lot of times at public auctions you get institutional bidders and only get about half what the vehicle is worth,” he said. County officials have already assessed the vehicles, and have established minimum bids. According to its Web site, eBay was founded in September 1995, and is the world’s online marketplace for the sale of goods and services by a diverse community of individuals and businesses. Today, the eBay community includes tens of millions of registered members from around the world. People spend more time on eBay than any other online site, making it the most popular shopping destination on the Internet. Pulliam did issue a caveat for prospective buyers. “Everything is sold as is, and they’ll have to come here and pick up the vehicles.”
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