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Old hotel looks for new market place

Staff ReporterFremantle Gazette

The building was set for extensive restoration works back in 2010 after issues between the Heritage Council of WA and the City of Cockburn were resolved.

But in the three years since, only parts of the exterior, including the roof, railings and the veranda, have been restored.

The building was put up for auction earlier this year, with locals excited that progress might be made. But those hopes were dashed when it was put up for sale again, with the building passed in at auction on October 12 because no one was keen on meeting the $1.5 million reserve.

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Agent Sam Farzio, working on behalf of Kee-Vee Properties, said he was currently dealing with a number of keen buyers and was confident it would soon be sold.

‘People get very nervous about heritage buildings and are concerned with the extra costs,’ he said. ‘Plus you can’t knock it down. You have to work with what you’ve got. But why would you want to anyway?

‘We hope someone can make good and keep the building’s old fa�ade. It just needs someone to come in and pick it up. There’s massive potential there.’

Cockburn’s planning and development director Daniel Arndt said the City did not believe the building’s heritage listing should be considered a constraint to any future development.

‘This can be seen by the fact that there have been a number of redevelopment proposals in the past that have been granted approval by the City and the Heritage Council,’ he said.

‘Whilst the City’s Scheme requires that the heritage listed hotel be retained, the current zoning ‘Local Centre’ allows a variety of different uses to be considered on the site, including residential, offices and retail.

‘This provides any potential landowner with considerable flexibility as to how the site could be redeveloped.’