Mitchell Waugh’s PHMG is caught between a demolition and a heritage place and battling council over what it argues are necessary works at its heritage-listed Royal Hotel in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
Built in 1888, the Royal Hotel is a three-storey pub on a corner of the famous Five Ways intersection in Paddington, and a proud example of Victorian architecture, with an ornate iron lacework balcony on the middle level wrapping two frontages and bold parapets.
The building is listed on the State’s National Trust register, and both the building and its interior are registered by Woollahra Municipal Council as being of significance in the precinct, which counts a number of heritage-listed structures.
Public House Management Group (PHMG) was established in 2014, and purchased the Royal in 2015 for around $15 million.
After sustaining rain damage, PHMG recently demolished part of bottleshop area.
A complaint to Council prompted an inspection, leading to the local authority applying a ‘stop work’ Order to the renovations.
PHMG is attempting to have the Order rescinded, arguing that the front sports bar “falls short” in accommodating the number of patrons wanting to be in there during big events, and the renovations were aiming to expand this area, through moving the gaming facilities to the rear of the site.
The Group’s heritage consultant advised that works had indeed damaged masonry walls deemed heritage-significant, but that this had not had any “negative impact”.
“We have taken great care to ensure the preservation of any heritage items,” stated PHMG COO Regan Shepherd.
“The storms that occurred last year did cause damage to the hotel, including to the bottleshop area.”
Although the works may not have been authorised by Council prior to beginning, the attention drawn to them may be a side-effect of the ‘frictious’ relationship with neighbours, after ongoing issues.
Early 2022 the Group was ordered to increase noise suppression, and ruled to have unduly disturbed “the quiet and good order” of the neighbourhood, followed by ILGA issuing directive in December for the Hotel to monitor its noise levels, and engage a patrol to ensure patrons did not loiter nearby.
Cr Harriet Price believes Woollahra Council’s heritage status was ignored, describing the demolition of protected interiors as “troubling in the extreme” and calling for greater penalties.
All parties should work together to preserve this buildin
Pubs are commercial – with in reason they should be allowed to renovate and develop .
If the Neighbour’s are so uptight about the pub being there make an offer , buy it de licence it and move in ?
It will only be in years to come the nimbys will be crying in their cappuccini about the lost pubs of Paddington that no one fought to save .