You'll find the Ascot Vale Hotel with its bright paint work, dominating the junction of Mount Alexander Road and Ormond Road in Moonee Ponds. As their web site says, they have been around for 130 years. The venue has a loyal following not only with the locals but also within the live music scene as one of the very few venues in the areas capable of supporting large bands.
There are various entrances to the venue. In through the Thirsty Camel bottle shop, in to the public bar or through in to the main bar with its stage. There is one long bar that serves all three rooms so it is easy to manage. To the rear of the bottle shop is a large car park and a small converted smoking area, which makes it very easy for those coming to see bands and also to pick up the car the next day. The infamous Tramstop bar has the stage , its own bar and then various seating areas both bistro dining and boothed. At the far end of the Tramstop Bar is a large courtyard that can seat about sixty. Behind the bar are storage rooms, a large cool room and a small kitchen area. The latter is not used at the moment and will need to be re-equipped. Upstairs there is long and short term accommodation in the form of a one bedroom flat and six single rooms. Income from these rooms is on average over $1000 a week which covers half the venue rent. Access is via a private staircase from the car park.
There are eleven years left on the lease made up of 1+5+5 with rent coming in at $1950 a week including GST. The Ascot Vale Hotel has a General Licence till 1am with a capacity of 200 with the additional capability to serve residents at any time and also off premises till 11pm. There are no security restrictions. All fixtures and fitting are included in the sale.
The Ascot Vale Hotel is low risk and run under management at the moment but really suits an owner operator that wants to take on their own live music venue. The kitchen does not have to be used and can be sub let as in the past. There are lots of forward bookings of bands and they can be really expanded upon by someone that is more in tune with the live music scene. The vendors are motivated sellers as they want to concentrate on their other venues and so are looking for offers in the region of $145,000 for this exclusively listed venue.
This venue is now UNDER CONTRACT. Settlement is due at the end of May. The landlrod has agreed a rent free period until the Covid 19 restrictions are lifted.
