Monday, March 2, 2009 11:51 AM By Dana Wilson

The Columbus Dispatch DELAWARE, Ohio -- The Delaware Hotel, which closed last fall, will be auctioned at a sheriff's sale scheduled for March 18 at 10 a.m.

The four-story hotel at 351 S. Sandusky St. was condemned in September after city inspectors found safety- and health-code violations.

Violations included inoperable smoke alarms or alarms without batteries in roughly 95 percent of rooms; vacant rooms containing food scraps; improper electrical connections on air-conditioning units; exposed wiring and uncapped electrical boxes; and bathroom water leaks and mold.

The minimum bid for the hotel and roughly 5.4 acres of land is $860,000. The appraised value is about $1.3 million, according to liquidator and auctioneer Gryphon USA, of Lewis Center.

Prospective buyers can tour the property March 11 and March 16 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

"While the property needs some corrective actions before the business can re-open, any experienced operator can accomplish what needs to happen quickly and re-start the business into a profitable venture," Gryphon President Richard F. Kruse said in a news release.