Momento Hospitality has divested big western Sydney suburban the Silverwater Hotel to Marlow Hotel Group, in one of the year’s biggest transactions.
The Colosimo family’s award-winning Momento Hospitality has invested in new developments in recent years, including Mullane’s Hotel in Baulkham Hills and the behemoth Oran Park Hotel. In 2023 the group reimagined the former Dooley’s Waterview Club into a large-fomat hotel at Silverwater.
Located on the bank of Parramatta River, it is central to factories, commercial towers and resident communities, and close to the Silverwater Road M4/WestConnex interchange and Ermington masterplan and Melrose Park development, in the somewhat under-pubbed ‘burbs of Silverwater, Newington and Ermington.
An expansive footprint, on 7,277sqm, it encompasses multiple trading areas, providing a large bar and deck, sports bar and TAB, refurbished bistro dining area, games rooms, events space, beer garden and parking for 98 vehicles, with desirable 4am trading.
Although potentially still finding its market niche, the hotel generates annual revenue of around $17 million (FY25), and is proximate to several high turnover operations, such as the Wentworth and Markets hotels at Strathfield, and Ermington Hotel.
Taking up the opportunity is Jason Marlow’s group, for around $75 million. It tops the Webster family’s sale of Richard’s on the Park for $64 million to be the largest pub transaction of the year in metro Sydney, as the total volume of national transactions races past the annual average.
Marlow has taken possession and was onsite today settling in. He says the mix of departments appealed to them and they wanted to capitalise on this concept, as “old-style hoteliers that love serving f&b”.
“We like large-scale sites, where we can operate all parts to their maximum efficiency,” he told PubTIC.
“The Colosimos have taken it to a very nice standard, and we will continue under their design and concepts, and own it for a very long time.”
Established in several prominent Sydney venues, such as the Kings Park Tavern and Penrith’s Peachtree Hotel, purchased in 2018, Marlow Hotels has looked to expansion this year, having also purchased the Doonside Hotel in August from Peter Walker for around $35 million.
Silverwater was sent to market in September, less than three years after its rebirth into a hotel and only months after Momento sold its Duke of Dural to Good Beer Company for circa $25 million.
What is reported to have been a highly competitive on-market sales campaign was conducted by HTL Property’s Dan Dragicevich and Andrew Jolliffe, alongside JLL Hotels’ Ben McDonald and John Musca.
“Momento are widely regarded as pioneers in hotel redevelopment, with their current portfolio uniquely made up entirely of hotels they have literally built themselves,” offers Dragicevich.
“Silverwater was a masterful brownfield play, acquiring what was formerly a licensed premise and refashioning it into a full-service traditional hotel operation, with an exceptional result for what was an astute strategy.”
