Esplanade owners respond to premier's threat

Premier Colin Barnett has received a response from the owners of the old Esplanade Hotel site, following a threat he made before the State election to take the land back if they did not sell or develop it soon.

But it remains unclear what the Premier’s next step will be or if he will carry through the threat.

While an official statement has not been made, a source in the Premier’s office confirmed to the Albany Advertiser the site’s Singaporean-based owners CS Partners had contacted Mr Barnett.

The source said the owners had pointed out the site was already for sale and they had been attempting to sell it for more than five years, but they would now increase their efforts.

Albany MP Peter Watson said it was clear the owners did not take Mr Barnett’s threat seriously.

“Is the Premier satisfied that they will try harder,” Mr Watson asked.

“He had a really tough stance during the election campaign, but if he’s going to accept (that excuse) then it’s like getting hit over the hand with a wet bus ticket.”

Mr Watson claimed it was unlikely a hotel would ever be built at the site and questioned what the Government would do with the property if it acquired it.

He said the City of Albany needed to revisit the issue of rezoning the block to allow for greater residential development, which he said would make the land more %attractive to developers.

Two years ago Albany City Council rejected a push to reverse the zoning from 70 per cent tourism and 30 per cent residential to 70 per cent residential and 30 per cent tourism.

Albany Mayor Dennis Wellington agreed that reversing the zoning would make the block more appealing to buyers, and said if the issue came before council again, it could be approved this time.

“We would certainly look at it, because I think the situation has changed in terms of the economic climate,” he said.

“I would think it would be looked at differently.”

The site’s agent, Merrifield Real Estate director Jeremy Stewart, said there had been “considerable interest” in the property, which is on the market for $13 million plus GST.

Mr Stewart said there were discussions taking place with the owners, but “was not at liberty to say” if reducing the asking price was one of them.