TALLMADGE: Another Summit County shopping center hit by vacancies is on the auction block.Bidders have until 5 p.m. Oct. 24 to submit offers for Tallmadge Plaza Shopping Center at 505 South Ave. across from the newer Eastwood Square shopping center.The Tallmadge Plaza Shopping Center is just north of the Akron-Tallmadge line and the intersection of Darrow Road and Eastwood Avenue.The center — which is not identified by a sign — does not include the adjacent Kmart, one of the discount chain’s few remaining area stores.The sealed-bid auction follows an auction late last month for the much bigger Midway Plaza, about 1.5 miles away, on the Akron-Tallmadge line.There were no takers at the Midway auction Sept. 27. However, Michigan investor Johnny Peart remains interested in the Midway property.Tallmadge Plaza Shopping Center is in foreclosure after its owner, Tallmadge Shopping Center LLC, defaulted on a $2 million bank loan. Delinquent property taxes and interest total about $44,000. Tallmadge Shopping Center LLC is operated by Michael Bolognue, who declined to comment.The 7.2-acre property is appraised at about $4 million for tax purposes.People in the commercial real estate industry say overbuilding of retail space and the weak economy are triggering vacancies, prompting financial troubles for owners — particularly those of older properties.“These are trends going on throughout the United States in developed cities,” said Gordon Greene, principal with Chartwell Group LLC of Cleveland, which handled the Midway auction.Most of Tallmadge Plaza Shopping Center was built in 1977.The center lost its major tenant — an Acme grocery store — about five years ago. The Acme moved across the street, into the former Tops grocery store in Eastwood Square.At Tallmadge Plaza Shopping Center, Acme vacated a building totaling 33,000 square feet that previously housed a Kroger grocery. The building accounts for more than half the space of the entire center, which is 50,000 square feet.The plaza’s remaining tenants are Dollar General, April Mae’s hair salon, First American Cash Advance, American General Finance Management Corp. and Pizza Hut.Bids must be submitted to Wilson Auction and Realty Co. of Bryan, Ohio, by 5 p.m. Oct. 24. For more information, go to www.wilsonauction.ltd.com.Concerning Midway Plaza, Johnny Peart, of Peart Corp., with offices in Michigan, said he’s been talking about a possible purchase with Chartwell Group officials, “but no agreement has been reached.”Only 40 percent of Midway is occupied. The plaza at Brittain Road and Tallmadge Avenue is not in foreclosure. Two vacant spaces were previously occupied by retailers Big Lots and High Point Furniture. Most of Midway Plaza is in Tallmadge, except for a section of the parking lot that is in Akron.Peart said his company invests in distressed properties and spruces them up while also keeping lease rates low enough to attract a mix of tenants that would draw customers.“The only way one can do that,” he said, “is by buying [the property] at a price that makes sense.”Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.