Regional pub groups snap up Coffs Harbour, Dubbo venues
Pub groups have splashed out almost $40 million on hospitality venues in Coffs Harbour and Dubbo as investment flows into regional hubs that have benefited from the post-COVID-19 exodus from Sydney.
At Moonee Beach, about 13 kilometres from Coffs Harbour, a consortium of publicans comprising Martin Short, Sean O’Hara and Jamie Malouf have acquired the Moonee Beach Tavern from hotelier Harry Barry of the North Coast Hotel Group.
It is understood the tavern at 2 Moonee Beach Road changed hands for about $22 million. The pub is a well-known venue for local entertainment acts.
Mr Short, whose family have a long association with NSW pubs, said the Moonee Beach Tavern was an exciting addition to the consortium’s growing NSW Mid North Coast portfolio which includes the Toormina Hotel in Coffs Harbour and the nearby Sawtell Hotel.
“It’s a high-quality asset left in good stead by the previous owner,” Mr Short said.
The sale was negotiated by Blake Edwards from HTL Property. Mr Edwards said it was his firm’s fifth significant northern NSW coastal hotel sale in the past 12 months.
Mr Barry said the sale would allow his group to invest time and energy into its other pubs, starting with renovations of both the Coramba and Hoey Moey in Coffs Harbour as well as the large-scale redevelopment of the Good Intent Hotel in Grafton.
In central NSW, the Milestone Hotel in Dubbo has changed hands for about $15 million.
It was bought by Sydney-based unlisted Pub Fund, Harvest Hotelswhich added the Milestone Hotel to its growing stable of assets including Brady’s Railway Hotel in Albury, and the newly refurbished Courthouse Hotel in Tamworth.
The hotel was sold on behalf of long-term private owners Joanne and Neville Blair, by JLL Hotels’ Kate MacDonald and Knight Frank’s Mike Wheatley.
Originally built in 1881, the Milestone Hotel was fully restored by the Blair family in 2005.
“The acquisition further highlights the ongoing confidence in the regional pub market, where despite contracting yields, the appetite to obtain assets in unprecedented growth regions remains high,” Ms MacDonald said.
Harvest Hotels co-founders Chris Cornforth and Fraser Haughton said they aimed to create iconic hospitality experiences in growing regionalcommunities across Australia.
“The Milestone is a high-quality building and really fits the mould for the type of pub that we operate,” Mr Haughton said.
“We look forward to taking over the reins and adding our own touches to this great pub.”
