Capital Gain
Pub owners Athol and Lee Davis have called last drinks at their Miller Street landmark, the popular North Sydney hotel, after close to three decades of ownership.
The couple have sold the venue to hoteliers Kent and Desley Walker who paid about $28 million for the 1201 square metre corner site opposite North Sydney oval.
“The North Sydney Hotel has been such a central part of mine, and my wife Lee’s life over the past three decades, and whilst reluctant to let it go, we do so knowing it is in fine hands,” Athol Davis said.
The two-level hotel is a diversified hospitality operation. It includes 12 recently renovated accommodation rooms and 25 gaming machines that generate combined annual revenue of $6.5 million.
Given its proximity to the oval, the pub at 292 Miller Street is usually packed before and after games that can include the Sydney Swans AFLW team. The oval was the former home of the North Sydney Bears rugby league club.
HTL Property’s Andrew Jolliffe and Dan Dragicevich advised on the sale.
Accor expands
Sydney’s west must be crying out for new hotels. Accor Hotels intends to open a Novotel targeting rising traveller numbers as the new international airport comes online.
The planned venue will be part of the $500 million development at Castle Hill under construction by the Reve Group. The mixed-use Nova Reve precinct will incorporate a 143 guestroom hotel with conference amenities, a pool and a rooftop bar that plane spotters will likely use when the airport has international arrivals.
The hotel is scheduled to open in 2029. The rest of the precinct has 253 apartments across three towers, rising to 23 levels at their tallest point, and more than 1600 square metres of ground level shops and cafes, including almost an acre of communal gardens.
Adrian Williams, chief operating officer of Accor in the Pacific region, said the new Novotel will help to alleviate a lack of supply of hotels in the Hills District.
Place to be
Queensland Investment Corporation has also decided Sydney’s Hill district is the place to be after unveiling a $600 million investment in the next stage of redevelopment at its Castle Towers shopping centre.
Construction is set to kick off next month. Castle Towers is directly connected to Castle Hill Metro station and located at the heart of the Castle Hill town centre. The project will add 30,000 square metres across four levels with 70 new stores and a 6000 square metre rooftop health and wellness destination.
Deborah Coakley, managing director of Real Estate at QIC, said the strength of retailer demand for space at Castle Towers “reinforced QIC’s conviction in Sydney’s north-west, particularly the Hills District”. Completion is currently anticipated in late 2029, with Castle Towers remaining operational as works progress.
Riverside Plaza
Kyron Capital is offloading the Riverside Plaza shopping centre in Queanbeyan. The group wants about $100 million for the 21,660 square metre centre, which is about 14 kilometres from Canberra’s CBD.
The mall is anchored by a Coles supermarket and hosts major and mini-major tenants that generate more than $80 million in turnover. The centre’s speciality tenants return moving annual turnover of around $9422 per sq m, said selling agent CBRE’s Simon Rooney, who is managing the sale with James Douglas and James Sherley. JLL’s Sam Hatcher and Nick Willis also have the listing.
Contact carolynannecummins@gmail.com
The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.
From our partners
About the Author
