PROVO — A historic building on 295 W. Center Street that used to be home to Provo Craft & Novelty Inc. in downtown Provo was recently sold, according to Commerce CRG.

The Richard J. Meyer Trust sold the 20,000-square-foot, four-story building, which has been vacant for the past three years, to a private buyer for around $1.125 million, said Ben Pike, an agent with Commerce CRG.

“On a price per square-foot basis, it’s incredibly cheap. It has good visibility, and is one of the nicest historical buildings downtown in terms of aesthetic. This older brick type building after it has been remodeled will lease well,” he said.

Evelyn Johnson, a broker with Johnson Realty, which represents the buyer, said her client declined to identify himself or comment on his plans for the building. “The building will be used primarily for retail use,” she said.

Built in the 1920s by Arthur N. Taylor, Albert F. Dixon and Sidney W. Russell to house their Provo furniture store, Dixon, Taylor, Russell Co., the building was last occupied by Provo Craft, which relocated its Internet sales division and woodshop to Spanish Fork from Provo in 2006.

Provo Craft, which has a 200,000-square-foot warehouse in Spanish Fork, owns 11 Roberts Arts and Crafts stores in Utah including four in Orem, Provo, American Fork and Pleasant Grove, and one in Idaho. It also has a Provo Craft outlet store in Lindon.

The building has changed hands several times since Provo Craft was owner. The scrapbooking supplies company sold the building in 2002 to Jon Anderson, partner and principal broker with Commerce CRG. Anderson then sold it to the Meyer trust in 2004, which became Provo Craft’s landlord until 2006.

“The building has been vacant for a long time because it’s a difficult size to lease and sell for downtown Provo,” Pike said. “It came under contract three times over the past three years. But each time the sale failed. One buyer, who planned to bring a restaurant and catering operation, couldn’t get financing because of the tight credit situation. Another buyer, a nightclub owner, changed his mind and bought a property in Salt Lake instead. The third buyer also couldn’t get financing for the property.”

“Because of the building’s proximity to the Covey Arts Center, and civic buildings, it’s a prime candidate for a hotel, or hospitality or retail use,” Anderson said.