It’s no secret that Delaware North, owners of the Boston Bruins hockey team and the TD Garden arena they call home, has long coveted the MBTA-owned parking facility on top of which its arena sits.

Now, thanks to the possible sale of the North Station garage, it seems Delaware North may finally get its chance to add the underground facility to its portfolio of permitted projects in the immediate area.

The cash-strapped MBTA is putting the 1,280-space garage on the market for a minimum bid of $70 million to purchase outright, or $65 million to lease it for up to 75 years.

The downtown facility is less than 20 years old, generates about $4.75 million each year, and is selling for a price markedly lower than it would cost to rebuild. That is the very definition of what industry experts call “a rare asset.”

Delaware North is already permitted for and in possession of plans for a 37-story tower with 361 residential units and 240 parking spaces in 550,000 square feet of space along Nashua Street and Causeway Street, where the old Boston Garden was located. Delaware also has decades-old easements green-lighting access through the North Station garage’s southern wall to access a possible future garage, and would make use of existing ramps and entrances to access the new facility, according to previous Banker & Tradesman reports.

Sources told Banker & Tradesman that Delaware is expected to be among the strongest bidders for the property, if not the strongest. Tricia McCorkle, director of public relations for TD Garden, said the company had no comment beyond that it will be looking at the MBTA’s request for proposals when it is issued.

A Rare Asset

While the developer is likely to be one of the first in line, national parking companies LAZ Parking and Standard Parking are likely to express an interest, along with Pilgrim Parking, all of which have multiple Boston locations, according to industry sources.

When asked what makes most sense for the garage, Thomas O’Brien, managing director of HYM Investment Group, said while private investors would be interested, it would not be surprising if it were operated by an established parking company.

“Given its size, the fact it’s still new and underground, I would bet it would be a pretty attractive asset for a lot of parking companies,” O’Brien told Banker & Tradesman. “It’s a pretty rare asset to own.”

But given Delaware North’s proximity to the garage and its history with the property, O’Brien also acknowledged the company would also most likely have more than a passing interest in its acquisition.

A garage like North Station’s would cost approximately $100,000 per space to build today, so at an asking price of $70 million, or roughly $55,000 a space, “you couldn’t build it for what you buy it for,” O’Brien continued.

The MBTA is putting the garage up for sale in part to help pay down hundreds of millions of dollars in budget shortfalls and annual bond payments, according to reports. The agency is expected to collect $350 million from bond sales in addition to proceeds from sales of assets like the North Station garage.

The T’s larger budget plan involves refinancing debt and offering the next 30 years’ worth of parking income from its hundred or so other garages and parking lots statewide to investors for $300 million. The agency would retain rights to set the price and collect money at most of its parking lots and garages, but the North Station facility would be sold outright or leased.

As previously reported in Banker & Tradesman, the North Station garage is considered an anomaly in the T’s parking network. The MBTA was granted ownership of the garage in 1993, as part of a deal that deal allowed the T to run the old elevated Green Line underground through two levels of the garage. The structure also happens to be the foundation of the TD Garden.

The quasi-public transportation agency pays no taxes or insurance, and its utility costs are paid in bulk, so the garage has always had more value for the T than a private operator because the T’s operating costs are lower.

But that doesn’t mean private developers haven’t tried – especially Delaware North, which was always denied a seat because of the cash flow generated by the garage. But that door has now seemingly been opened.

Companies interested in making a bid to buy or lease the garage must submit proposals to the MBTA by July 27.