On Thursday, May 24, the Washington State Liquor Control Board plans to auction the rights for 18 state liquor stores, including the North Bend store.

Following the online auction that ended April 20, top-bidders representing 18 state liquor stores did not pay their posted bid, sacrificing their deposit. Bidders representing 149 state liquor stores have already paid a total of $25.9 million in bid fees to the state.

“This has been a highly successful auction process,” said WSLCB Business Enterprise Director Pat McLaughlin. “We have already collected nearly $26 million in bids plus about one million more in fees.”

Bids in the online auction that ended April 20 totaled $30.75 million. Following the live auction, the WSLCB estimates total bids and fees will exceed $31 million.

Bidding begins at 10 a.m. Thursday at the WSLCB Distribution Center, 4401 East Marginal Way in Seattle. The bid deposit is $10,000.

Successful bidders will win the exclusive right to apply for a liquor license at the current location within its current footprint. All state liquor stores are below the 10,000 square foot threshold for liquor sales established by Initiative 1183.