This article has been corrected from its original version.

Colquitt County Commission delayed a decision Monday on a land sale that could net the county more than $2 million. It plans to use the extra time to further investigate the highest bids.

The county opened bids this week, with offers ranging from $1.8 million to as much as $2.295 million. The offers are for a piece of property the county owns is about 15 acres at the intersection of Veterans Parkway North and Highway 37 East.

The county listed the bidders as Northlake-Wilwat Properties, with a bid of $2.295 million, Teramore Development at $2.28 million and Armstrong Development’s offer of $1.8 million.

After giving those figures, commissioners closed the meeting to the public for about 45 minutes to discuss the real estate issue.

Georgia law allows for closing meetings to discuss matters pertaining to the purchase and sale of property.

County Administrator Chas Cannon said Tuesday that no meeting has been scheduled to continue the discussion and to possibly accept one of the proposals.

“We’re continuing to go through the bids,” he said during a telephone interview on Tuesday. “It’s something we want to take our time with.”

Prior to commissioners closing the meeting, a representative of Teramore told them that his company’s bid was the same — at $150,000 per acre — as Northlake/Wilwat’s. Uncertainty over the amount of acreage contained in the lot accounted for the difference in the bid totals, he told commissioners.

Cannon said that in addition to the money the county would receive, the development it could mean also is important.

“I’m just excited about [what it] represents, potential future growth for Colquitt County,” he said. “We definitely need some jobs in the area. Whatever we can do to get jobs in the area, we are going to do that.”

Officials have told The Observer that a Publix supermarket is among the companies looking at Moultrie and that the county-owned property is a potential location for the development.

Publix Super Markets, headquartered in Lakeland, Fla., has stores in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Publix has 1,077 store locations, including 181 in Georgia, second only to the 753 stores in Florida, according to the company. That includes stores in Thomasvile, Tifton and two in Valdosta.

The Moultrie Winn-Dixie, which employed 80, closed last week.

The announcement of that closing in late February came a week after Riverside Manufacturing Co. announced the elimination of 140 jobs in its Moultrie cut-and-sew operation and warehousing.

Bi-Lo Holdings, parent company of Winn-Dixie, purchased the Harvey’s across the street from the Moultrie store on First Avenue.

Cannon said that the county has not decided how the proceeds would  be used if a sale goes through.

“Right now we’re just still discussing everything,” he said. “I think it’s going to be good.”