Joe Huber's family farm will stay in business after the auction

"I'm in shock," said Clem, kissing her husband Matthew and dozens of friends who showed up to watch the sale.

In September, the four adult children of Joe Huber Jr. agreed to sell the restaurant, a farm market, a restored century-old farm, tractors and outbuildings, as well as about 130 acres of field crop land and to take their place. retirement.

This announcement surprised many regular customers in Louisville and surrounding counties, as meal tours and pumpkin picking have become an autumnal ritual for many families.

At the auction on Saturday morning, several hundred people gathered in a large barn catering where auctioneer Doug Harritt organized three rounds of auctions on 20 individual parcels.

When all the highest bids were collected, the total amounted to nearly $ 2.1 million, which was obviously not high enough for the four family members, who were looking for a price closer to $ 2.5 million.

They ended up getting it and the total price, along with the buyer's premium to pay for the auction services, was $ 2,731,300.

Previously: The Farm & Restaurant family of Joe Huber, a local monument, will be sold

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Samtec's founder, Sam Shine, was one of the main bidders at the auction of Joe Huber's family farm and restaurant. November 17, 2018 (Photo: David R. Lutman, special issue of the Courier newspaper)

Harritt and the lawyers who helped prepare the packages for sale eventually convinced the top bidders to consider increasing their bids after three rounds.

The result is that each of the four bidders agreed to put more in the pot. This meant, for example, that Louis Huber, his wife and the Clems had increased their offer from $ 690,000 to $ 880,000 for the restaurant, restaurant barns and an adjacent 6-acre parcel used for overflow parking.

Sam Shine, founder of a global cable and connector manufacturing company based in New Albany, was engaged, prior to the auction, to purchase farmland through the Foundation. Sam Shine, saying that it was crucial not to break the farm.

With attorney Allen Platt in charge of negotiations with Harritt and Huber's heirs on hand, they reached an undisclosed price on 11 separate farmland parcels surrounding the restaurant's property. Shine, who attended, declined to comment after the auction.

"We are happy," Platt said. "It's good for the community."

Another block of four parcels totaling about 30 acres has been awarded to the operators of Huber's Orchard and Winery, an unrelated business located nearby. They paid about $ 300,000 for farmland closest to their farm.

Clem, who wore a gray T-shirt with the words "Dream Big" on the front, looked stunned and relieved as the crowd of more than 300 people began to step out of the barn and head for the car park.

She thanked the people who donated about $ 17,000 through a GoFundMe page to help her save her business. Keeping the business in the family was the goal from the beginning, she said.

"All I can say to everyone is that I do not have words. … Thank you very much for your support. "

Clem said that for now, the plan is to keep the restaurant open until the end of the year, as promised. The way the company will materialize next year and beyond is still under discussion.

"We have a lot of ideas (but) we want to develop them and not keep them exactly," she said.

Harritt then issued a statement stating that the Hubers "wish to express their deep gratitude to all those who have supported them over the past nine decades".

Check-out: From ravioli to shoemakers, an overview of Joe Huber's best dishes