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Summary:
- Star has appointed agents for the sale of its Treasury Brisbane properties
- The move comes after Charter Hall pulled out of an earlier sale and partial leaseback deal with the casino operator
- Star will now focus on its core assets, including the under-construction Queen’s Wharf Brisbane
Australian casino operator Star Entertainment Group is pushing on with plans to sell its Treasury properties in Brisbane after an earlier agreement with property investment and funds management firm Charter Hall collapsed in June.
Star Recommences Efforts to Sell Brisbane Properties
According to the Australian Financial Review, Star has appointed agents to facilitate the sale of its Brisbane assets which include the Treasury casino and hotel buildings, as well as the car park located between the two establishments. Paul Noonan from JLL and Sam McVay from McVay Real Estate will act as an intermediary between Star and the potential buyers of the three buildings.
The sale is expected to raise more than $200 million for Star as it shifts its focus to its new property, Star Brisbane, a $3.6 billion integrated resort development located behind Queens Gardens.
Treasury Casino has a gross floor space of 20,000 square meters, while Treasury Hotel comprises six floors with a total of 120 rooms. The car park beneath Queens Gardens consists of over 600 parking bays. The three properties could either be bundled together as a single unit or sold separately.
According to McVay, the sale represents an “exceptional opportunity” for prospective buyers given Treasury Brisbane’s historical significance, character, and aesthetic, and its ideal location.
Treasury Brisbane is not the only property that has been put up for sale in the city. In September, Pacific Hotels announced that it’s selling The Pacific Hotel in Brisbane for a price tag of between $52 million and $55 million. In August, The Inchcolm by Ovolo hotel was sold to Invictus Developments for $25 million.
In March, global real estate company City Developments Limited (CDL) acquired Sofitel from Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management under a $178 million deal.
Star to Retain Core Assets
Star divulged that it enlisted agents to sell its Treasury Brisbane properties in late August during which it also reported $2.4 billion in annual losses.
The Australian casino operator subsequently announced that it wanted to keep its “strategic world-class assets”, its Sydney and Gold Coast casinos, with the group also expressing its intention to retain its share in Queen’s Wharf Brisbane. Destination Brisbane Consortium, a joint venture comprising Star, Far East Consortium, and Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, is behind the new development which is set to launch in April next year.
