In further dismantlement of Jon Adgemis’ Public Hospitality portfolio, the once jumping former Town Hall Hotel in Balmain is being sold through receivers.
Set on the bustling corner of arterial Darling and Montague streets opposite the suburb’s actual Town Hall, the Town Hall Hotel was built in 1888 in the Victorian Italianate style as part of the Balmain Civic group of buildings.
The two-storey building occupies a 433sqm lot and spans three levels, incorporating below-ground storage, retail space on the ground floor, and upstairs accommodation plus a rooftop terrace enjoying views of the Sydney CBD.
Mid-2017 Adgemis acquired the site for circa $8 million after making Balmain Pub Group an unsolicited offer said to be “too good to refuse”. But less than a year after buying the freehold going concern, the Hotel was returned to market as a mixed-use passive freehold.
In the past decade it has operated as a pub, and as a mixed-use premise occupied by a massage parlour, gym and bottleshop.
Its premium corner site is touted as possessing “incredible flexibility” – its 326-patron capacity enhanced by an approved DA for alterations and additions to the existing building.
Late 2024 the wheels fell off the Public pub investment vehicle and creditors called in five of the group’s pubs, taking possession of Oxford House in Paddington, The Norfolk in Redfern, the Camelia Grove Hotel in Alexandria, The Strand in Darlinghurst and the nearby Exchange Hotel, under redevelopment.
Wexted Advisory’s Joseph Hayes has now been appointed by lender Latrobe Financial to facilitate the sale of the Town Hall Hotel asset, which is currently vacant.
It’s thought a suitable operator could remodel the property, potentially replicating local successes such as the nearby Dry Dock Hotel, rejuvenated and relaunched late 2023 by Peninsula Hospitality Group.
Adgemis’ group executed a similar overhaul of the Camelia, opening a revised business incorporating modern elements such as a ‘wine wall’ and boutique accommodation rooms in early 2023. As a result of it being repossessed, the Camelia – along with Public’s Norfolk – is now being operated by Solotel.
Skirting Sydney Harbour, the Balmain Peninsula enjoys a social local community plied with diverse retail businesses, blending historic charm with modern sophistication for robust revenue generation.
While other Public assets have languished, industry sources indicate the Town Hall “will be sold” and is expected to fetch sale price of circa $8.5 million.
Wexted has appointed Colliers’ James Cowan and Matthew Meynell, in conjunction with HTL Property’s Sam Handy and Andrew Jolliffe, who cite the “incredibly sought after” nature of this kind of opportunity.
“Strategically located at the highest point of Darling Street, interest is expected to be incredibly high given the rare blank canvas of the building, as well as the DA approval to renovate and re-establish a pub or café,” says Cowan.
Sydney’s inner west continues to benefit from investment in infrastructure, bringing the Sydney Metro West, the new WestConnex M4-M5 link, and reinvigoration of the Bays Precinct, and a refreshed market is ready to step up.
“Whilst clearly not restricted to hospitality use, pub sites such as this one have been particularly sought after these past few months; a function of compressed interest rate levels and the malleability of multi-level commercial property holdings in key corner locations,” adds Jolliffe.
The vacant freehold of 366 Darling Street Balmain is to be sold by public auction on Tuesday, 8 July.
