The Kurrajong Hotel at Erskineville, repossessed out of Jon Adgemis’ fading Public Hospitality fund, has sold as a vacant freehold for $20 million to a new hotel investor assembling a growing portfolio.
The big corner pub is an Art Deco classic built in the 1930s, replete with ornate parapets and classic burnt yellow tiles at street level. Known for its traditional charm, it offers a spacious ground floor bar and dining area, and all-popular outdoor spaces.
It was acquired in 2019 by Jaga Group – the previous iteration of Adgemis’ Group – which reopened it under its original moniker, the Kurrajong Hotel.
Adgemis’ move into pubs accumulated a portfolio of more than 20 venues across Sydney and Melbourne, fuelled by the concept of leveraging city pubs with accommodation into thriving mini-precincts.
At the Kurrajong a modern fit-out was executed in the bar, kitchen and amenities, while a third floor was also added to the structure, to create two levels of high-end boutique accommodation.
Public’s play came as the world looked to find a new normal post-pandemic, and challenges in supply lines, construction and rising interest rates brought Public to the brink of failure, necessitating a $400 million rescue package from Deutsche Bank.
Struggling with ballooning debt – reported to be estimated at an astonishing $1.8 billion – Adgemis was unable to keep all the wolves at bay and in 2024 one of his financiers, Australia Pacific Mortgage Fund, repossessed both the Kurrajong and Paddington’s The Rose.
New York-based Muzinich & Co similarly called time, appointing FTI Consulting as receivers at five more Public pubs in Sydney.
Having completed the renovation works, in May the Kurrajong joined the procession of Public pubs headed to market, with price expectations of $20 million.
It is understood to have sold now for at least that much – despite having no gaming assets and not having traded since the extensive renovation – to Millinium Capital Managers, led by MD Tom Wallace, who is believed to have previously dabbled in the sector in the echoes of the former ASX-listed Lantern Group, which sold down its portfolio in 2017.
Millinium says it is an “active investor on behalf of institutions and family offices” across a range of domestic and overseas assets.
Wallace has also been revealed as the recent buyer of two more Public pubs, being Balmain’s Town Hall Hotel and Paddington’s Rose, Shamrock and Thistle – aka Three Weeds – both in July.
The sale was orchestrated by HTL Property’s Andrew Jolliffe and Dan Dragicevich, who declined to confirm or deny the sale price or buyer, but offer that the new owners are expected to continue operating the Hotel in line with its rich traditions and close-knit community.
“The transaction reflects the continued and patent strength of the Sydney pub market, with significant interest from a broad range of buyers – attracted to the hotel’s prominent corner position and strategic location, with regard the city fringe,” says Dragicevich.
