Glenn Piper has hit opposition to plans to reconfigure the Commodore Hotel in McMahons Point as part of the goal to become a live music venue, triggering the traditional pushback by locals plus a private school.
The pub built on the site in 1854 was a sandstone inn named Billy Blue, replaced around 1900 with a Victorian building known as the Old Commodore, which was also demolished, in the 70s, making way for the hotel that stands today. Commanding a corner on bustling Blues Point Road, it features a stylish bar, large outdoor terrace, gaming lounge, restaurant, and adjoining liquor store.
Piper took the title for around $29 million mid-2023 from John Azar’s Good Beer Company, which had acquired it mid-2019 for around $18 million from Graham Campion.
The sale included an approved DA to capitalise on the in-progress growth of North Sydney, including a revised gaming room, sports bar and alfresco dining options.
A successful real estate investor, Piper burst into the sector early 2020 with purchase of Thorpe institution the Harbord (Hilton) Hotel, for circa $35 million, and in 2022 went on to buy the Beach Hotel of Merewether.
Taking the Commodore, he spoke of the opportunity to “elevate it into something really special that reflects the community today”.
The proposal would significantly increase the size and licensed area of the venue, converting an existing carpark space into new usable areas, while maintaining the same capacity, of up to 405 patrons.
This reconfiguration is part of a vision to increase entertainment offerings, and register as a live music venue. The submission to Liquor and Gaming NSW suggests it will have a “positive effect” on the local economy and offers there is “no readily apparent risks to the local community”.
However, the anticipated army of nay-sayers and no less than two North Sydney community precinct associations have voiced alarm at the plans, citing the long-lauded concerns of increased patron capacity and noise, and reduced parking.
There is also a concern about the potential impacts such a development might have on the ‘village atmosphere’ of McMahons Point, beside North Sydney, the second CBD of Sydney.
Objections originally included those from prestigious private school Shore, which is located a couple of blocks away but also owns student apartments across from the Hotel. It spoke to Liquor and Gaming on the expanded licensed area, in part concerned over increased patron activity, but also stemming from a recent incident of a man ‘unlawfully trespassing’ on school grounds who was “suspected” to have come from the Commodore.
Representatives for the Hotel sought dialogue with the school to resolve the issue, and a spokesperson said their concerns had now been addressed, in a “productive meeting”.
In a statement, Piper reiterated a recreation of the venue that “resonates with today’s community”.
“At the heart of our business is a desire to revive local pride in the venues we take on,” he said.
“We’re excited to breathe new life into this very special part of Sydney and create an experience that the whole community can call their own.”
Last month the NSW Government announced reforms to encourage live music and the hospitality industry, significantly including ‘first occupancy’ protections for pubs from the threat of NIMBYs and the all-too-familiar complaints by residents.
Liquor and Gaming will make final determination on the application at the Commodore.
