Eye-watering prices paid for 61 Mt Buller ski lift chairs

A flurry of bidding has helped turn 61 chairs from Mt Buller’s Blue Bullet chairlift into $100,000 for the local hospital.

The charitable windfall emerged during a Saturday auction just days after Mt Buller legend Hans Grimus, who was responsible for building the mountain’s first chairlifts, passed away.

Rino Grollo, who has played a major role in developing the mountain over the years, made the first run, splashing $1800 on the first chair auctioned for the day.

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Another bidder offered $2300 for chair number eight, and the average price was $1250, according to Castran Real Estate auctioneer John Castran.

“It was pretty amazing,” he says.

The Blue Bullet chairlift chairs have raised $100,000 at auction. Picture: Andrew Railton, Mt Buller.

It took just an hour and seven minutes for the massive sum to be compiled.

But it will take substantially longer for the Mansfield Hospital to work out what to do with it.

Mansfield District Hospital auxiliary president Anne Mudge says it is the biggest individual sum ever offered to the hospital — and will need to be discussed with the hospital executive before a decision can be made on where it will do the most good.

“We just can’t believe it, it seems like an incredible dream,” Mudge says.

“We have never been in such a good position.”

Castran says the buyers, mostly Mt Buller regulars, had been very generous — but not very clear with their plans.

Mansfield District Hospital auxiliary president Anne Mudge shakes hands with Rino Grollo who purchased the first chair.

“They’re not even sure what they’re going to do with them,” he says.

The chairs are part of the Blue Bullet chairlift, which is being decommissioned at the end of this snow season to make way for a new one capable of carrying six passengers on each chair.

The auction marked the biggest sell-off for the mountain since the Grollo family sold a mix of 24 apartments, land lots and luxury chalet The Stables in 2012.

And it came amid strong conditions for alpine property, according to Castran.

“In the last 12 months the stock level on Buller is down to bugger all,” he says.

“About 80 properties, whether it be apartments or a lodge, or something off the plan, have sold in the last 12 months.”

Normally the market might work through about 50 properties a year.

This article from the Herald Sun originally appeared as “$100,000 chairlift auction raises bar as Mt Buller property heats up”.