ARIZONA, USA — Going once, going twice... Sold, to whoever wants to buy a 40-foot-long shipping container used in a makeshift $200 million border wall in southern Arizona.
In his final months of office, then-Gov. Doug Ducey stacked dozens of empty shipping containers near the Mexico border in Yuma and Cochise counties to try and keep migrants out. The stunt kicked off a series of legal battles and protests, and ended with the wall being swiftly torn down after Gov. Katie Hobbs took office.
There is no documented evidence that the shipping containers made an impact on the flow of migrants or drugs over the border.
Each of the 2,000 containers cost $6,000, and Arizona had to pay the U.S. Forest Service $2.1 million in damages. Now, the state is trying to recoup some of the construction and legal costs by auctioning those containers off to the public.
The first round opens later this month. So, any takers?
Auction information
The first round of shipping containers goes on sale through the state's public auction platform on Monday, Oct. 16. However, you have to register your account at least a week in advance to be eligible to bid.
Bidding for the containers starts at $2,000 each -- a third of the initial cost -- but the containers are heavily used. The state Department of Administration guarantees, at least, that they'll have operable doors, a roof and a floor. A real estate agent might say they have character.
Each auction will include photos of the containers, and the winning bidder will have five days to finalize payment and schedule pickup. Transportation costs are the responsibility of the buyer, and they're being stored at the Arizona Prison Complex in Tucson.
There are three groupings in this first round, and the round will be open for 14 days. After that, the department plans to load another three auctions, and so on and so forth.
Shipping containers are still available to registered governments and eligible nonprofit organizations for direct purchase.
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