Ninety-four-year-old rich-lister Bruce Gordon is not to be left out of the pub market frenzy, bringing his idyllic oceanside Scarborough Hotel to the game.
The landmark pub was established in 1886, residing on a 3,904sqm lot in the coastal precinct of Scarborough. The heritage-listed building is 614sqm, with no capacity limit and expansive ocean views, with a cliff-top beer garden.
The lot is zoned C4 Environmental Living, which is a special purpose zone for land with “special environmental or scenic values” where residential development can be accommodated.
Gordon owns half of the St George Illawarra Dragons rugby league team, is the largest shareholder in Nine Entertainment, and owns regional TV station WIN, which has held title on the pub since 1983.
It is being operated under a lease, expiring 30 June, 2025, with no further options.
Back in 2015 WIN sold its Imperial Hotel at Clifton to Shellharbour Workers’ Club, for around $2.2 million, and suggesting a new owner will have “fresh ideas on how to maximise” the appeal and opportunities at the Scarborough, the property billionaire is stepping up to the sales frenzy.
“The Scarborough Hotel is a site with major potential, and with two years remaining on the lease this is the right time to list it for sale,” says Andrew Lancaster, WIN Corporation CEO.
It has been close to four decades since the well patronised Illawarra has been on the market, and the current tenant is similarly willing to move on, reportedly open to selling the business separately. Annual rent generated at the hotel is just north of $305k.
The tenant also holds the title on an adjoining 4,321sqm parcel of land, and is interested in selling that also.
No sale price for the freehold, business or opportunity has been disclosed, but there has been no shortage of enquiry already, says Simon Kersten, managing director at Colliers Wollongong, marketing the property.
“It is a unique asset and the process will let us know what the market thinks.”
The freehold of the Scarborough Hotel, Scarborough, is being sold via Expressions of Interest, closing Wednesday, 5 April.
