AUBURN – Right now there are broken banisters, cracked risers and some bald spots in the plaster, but to Tim Veilleux’s eye, those are all easy repairs to what will someday be beautiful downtown apartments.

“That’s why I bought the place,” said the Auburn businessman, who, with his wife Karen, now owns the former Black Watch and Reid’s Guns and Cigars buildings.

He bought the properties at 84 and 86 Court St. at a foreclosure auction Tuesday. The two buildings, which were built around 1900, total 6,500 square feet and are assessed at about $300,000. Veilleux declined to reveal the amount of his winning bid, but did say he was very pleased with the price.

“I did get a good deal on it,” he said, adding he went directly to City Hall to pay back taxes and an overdue water bill. Then he contacted Bangor Savings Bank, which gave him a 15-year loan on the property.

“I’ll be paying about $1,100 a month for both,” he said, obviously pleased with the transaction. “It’s great property. I don’t understand why more people didn’t bid on it.”

Veilleux began clearing the second and third floors above the gun shop on Wednesday, eager to convert the space into apartments. Both floors have three big windows overlooking the Civil War statue in front of Superior Court, and the intersection of Mechanics Row and Court Street.

“It’ll take $50,000 to $60,000 to make them really nice … that’s apiece,” he said, pointing out the hardwood floors and trim. Each floor measures about 125-by-35 feet, ideal for studio apartments, he said.

If all goes well and he gets the code and permit work done, Veilleux said he hopes to have the units available to rent by next spring. In the meantime, he has invited John Reid to continue running his gun shop on the street level.

Reid was the former owner of the two buildings. Veilleux said he’s known Reid for a long time, having been a frequent patron of the Black Watch restaurant, which occupied one of the buildings for the past nine years.

The night before the auction, Veilleux contacted Reid to let him know he planned on bidding.

“He was glad. He hoped I’d get it,” he said.

Veilleux said he’s not sure what will happen with the restaurant.

“It’s in great shape, and I bought all the kitchen equipment as well, so it could still operate as a restaurant,” he said, although there are some code issues that would have to be addressed by a new occupant.

Veilleux said he’s received more than 30 calls since he purchased the property, from real estate agents and business people who might be interested in taking over the property.

“But I’m just waiting it out … there’s no rush,” he said. He said he’d consider other retail uses for the restaurant space, such as a wine bar or gift shop or deli.

Veilleux intends to manage the property himself. He already manages several apartments in Lewiston and Portland.

“I definitely bought it because of the location,” he said, surveying the traffic streaming by. “I think this market is booming again, and you can’t get this kind of property every day, because nobody’s selling them.”