Globe Correspondent

     With a winning bid of $2.375 million at an auction on April 29, brothers Joseph and Nabil Sater became the new owners of the former Somerville Armory on Highland Avenue, and possibly knights in shining armor to the local arts community.
     Many are hoping that the Saters, who have owned the Middle East Restaurant & Nightclub in Cambridge for 30 years, will turn the 33,200-square-foot castle-shaped building into a local gallery and/or performing arts center.
     Joseph Sater said he is keeping his lips sealed until he and his brother talk to city officials and neighborhood residents, but he indicated that the neighborhood need not be concerned about a loud rock club moving in.
     "We just wanted to step in to save the building and try to come up with something that makes sense for it," he said.
     The Saters have a track record with the local arts scene. In addition to operating the Middle East Restaurant, the brothers helped run Club Passim in Cambridge when it encountered some difficulties in the mid-90s.
     Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone said he wants to see the armory property generate taxes for the city, and an arts center may fit the bill.
     "Anything with artists being involved in the project would be a plus," Curtatone said. "They're a great catalyst for economic growth and quality of life."
     Gregory Jenkins, executive director of the Somerville Arts Council, said the armory is in good hands with the brothers Sater.
     "He's really helped with the revitalization of Central Square [in Cambridge] since he came into the area so many years ago," he said of Joseph. "And from the standpoint of the arts I think it's a very positive thing."
     Ken Field, a board member of the local arts organization ARTSomerville, said he was nervous that a developer might convert the structure into condominiums, or even worse, demolish the hundred-year-old structure to build something entirely different. But when he heard the Saters were the high bidders at the auction, his hopes were restored.
     "I was quite surprised and very pleased," he said. "I'm not privy to any of Joseph's plans for the building, but having known him for many years, I'm confident he'll be an asset to the neighborhood and the city of Somerville."
     ARTSomerville was formed last year with a major goal of turning the former armory into a cultural center for the city, but was forced to bow out before the bidding began due to lack of funds. Field says he has spoken with Joseph Sater about working with ARTSomerville.
     "It has been our goal to make an arts center happen, and we don't really care so much if it's us that do it," he said. "We don't need to take any credit. If this presents an opportunity for us that Joseph wants to do some sort of collaboration, we would be thrilled."
     Mayor Curtatone said he is also interested in working with Joseph and Nabil.
     "We want to work with them to do something that is not only good for the city, but also cost-effective for them," he said.
     With restoration estimates at $1 million, the building is in serious disrepair. Damage includes buckling floors, fallen-in ceilings, crumbling walls, and a leaking roof. Layers of dirt cover the windows, and chips of plaster litter the floor.
     But a number of developers thought the space had enough potential to turn up at last month's auction, where bidding started at $500,000 and shot to $2 million in less than three minutes, with five bidders competing. A sixth bidder entered the competition at about $2.35 million and stepped aside when Joseph Sater held up his auction ticket at $2.375 million.
     The final cost, which includes a buyer's fee of 10 percent, was $2,612,500. Steve Rosen of Canton-based Rysen Real Estate, said he and his partner Dave Ryan decided to bow out after the $1 million mark.
     "We would have liked to have seen what the city would have let us do, but we had a limit," he said. "The land alone is definitely worth it, though."
     Taking up an acre of land in one of the most densely populated cities in New England, the property is certainly an anomaly. Other unusual aspects include the 80 parking spaces behind the building and the building's medieval architecture.
     "It has always had its special place there, and it's been part of our community for more than a century," said Curtatone.
     "The castle effect," he added, "was always captivating to me as a kid."