From motel to affordable housing: Two Minneapolis signs up for auction

Two old Minneapolis motel signs have been put up for auction as Hennepin County prepares to convert the buildings into affordable housing units.

• The starting bid for each sign was $5. As of Thursday afternoon, Metro Inn's is up to $18, while Aqua City Motel's is over $520.

What they're saying: The signs had to be removed so it was clear rooms weren't available for rent, but the county recognized some might find them to be "novel or worth preserving," a spokesperson for Hennepin County told Axios.

Reality check: The signs are used, and there's no guarantee the neon works, according to the descriptions on the auction sites.

• Bidding closes on Tuesday, March 21 at 1pm.