A Ross businessman was the successful bidder this week at the auction of a historic hotel in the township.

Robert Colosimo offered $140,000 for the Evergreen Hotel at 1937 Babcock Blvd. The property is at the intersection of Babcock and Peoples Road.

The building, which stands on about one acre of land, was seized by state Attorney General Tom Corbett. The previous owner, James D. Nauman, forfeited ownership after he pleaded guilty to drug sales charges in 2006.

Proceeds from the sale will be used to fund drug enforcement programs.

Mr. Colosimo declined to discuss his plans for the 135-year-old building. He owns The Barn, a garden supply business, less than two miles away at 3004 Babcock Blvd.

The hotel was built in 1874. For more than a century it was run as a rest stop for travelers, private club, gourmet restaurant, nightclub and bar. It was operated in recent years as JezeBelles Showbar, a gentlemen's club that featured nude dancers.

A handful of bidders were among two dozen people who gathered at the hotel's parking lot for the noon auction Tuesday. Each participant was required to provide a $10,000 check that could be applied toward the purchase price. Checks were returned to unsuccessful bidders.

Auctioneer Jay Ziegler announced before the sale began that the state was not required to accept an offer that officials believed was too low.

He sought to start the bidding at $200,000, but he had no takers until the price dropped to $50,000. Over the next 10 minutes, bids on the property rose in $5,000 increments to $140,000.

At that point, Mr. Ziegler called a recess to confer with state officials. When he returned, he announced that the property would be sold.

He sought to raise the price by an additional $2,000 but no one made an offer.

He then announced that Mr. Colosimo was the successful bidder.

According to local historian John Schalcosky, the site of the hotel has been of commercial importance for more than two centuries.

It was the location of one of the region's first trading posts, where American Indian trappers and hunters would come to exchange their pelts for manufactured items, he said. The hotel property is adjacent to Evergreen Hamlet, a planned suburban village surveyed in 1851.

Barbara Ebert, of Zelienople, remembered visiting her grandparents, George and Katherine Arbogast, who ran the hotel in the 1930s. Mrs. Ebert, 83, came down to observe the auction.

One of her strongest memories of visits to the hotel involved New Year's Eve celebrations when she was just 4 or 5 years old.

During the day, she and her sister, Kathryn, would help fill up balloons, she said. The children would go to bed early, but they would be awakened near midnight to mark the end of the year. They also would help toss the balloons off an indoor balcony onto the heads of celebrants in the dining room below, she recalled.

The hotel had fallen on hard times in recent decades. Most recently, it was hit by a runaway Jeep and the interior was damaged by a leaking pipe.

Mrs. Ebert said she hoped the new owner would be able to restore it. "I hate to see it in this condition," she said.

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.