Tropicana Caffe site - the birthplace of TropFest - is on the market
If the walls could talk, the commercial premises housing Darlinghurst’s Tropicana Caffe, the birthplace of international short film festival Tropfest, would be a short film in itself.
The freehold site is now up for sale by the long-time owners Sergio Tezzo and George Semaan.
Tonci Farac, the former creator and owner of the Wildfire Restaurant in Circular Quay, and manager Duncan Thompson, a long-term member of Bill Granger’s restaurant stable, have recently taken a 10-year lease on the site, with options extending to 2047.
LJ Hooker Commercial Sydney’s Steven Kruyer and James Griffiths are managing the auction campaign for the site, which encompasses 284 square metres of dining floor space, 110 square metres of storage and two secure car spaces. The lease generates more than $285,000 in annual rent.
Operating from Darlinghurst’s Victoria Road, the Tropicana Caffe has been a cornerstone of Sydney’s dining scene for almost four decades.
Mr Kruyer said the auction represents an opportunity for an investor to buy a “landmark part of the inner-city’s dining scene”.
“For an investor, this offering represents an opportunity to pick up a landmark address and new, seasoned hospitality tenants who are planning to take Tropicana well into the future,” Mr Kruyer said.
The new restaurant tenants said they did not intend to rebrand or dramatically reinvent the Tropicana.
“The Tropicana will look a little different in that we’re planning some renovations and the staff will have uniforms, but there’s no significant changes planned,” Mr Thompson said.
Mr Griffiths said Victoria Road was proving a hotbed for divestment currently with LJ Hooker Commercial also selling an 871-square-metre whole floor commercial space at Level 1, 274 Victoria Road.
Across town a harbour-front development site in Manly, on the northern beaches, is on the market through Colliers International.
The 11 Oyama Avenue, 760-square-metre site currently holds a freehold property consisting of four residential units.
Colliers International agents Blake Harvey and Joseph George are selling the site in conjunction with Tim Mumford of Stone Real Estate.
“Manly development sites, especially on the waterfront are exceptionally rare, with just a small number of sales annually,” said Mr Harvey, who is investment services executive at Colliers International.
Joseph George, development site sales executive at Colliers International, said the Manly residential market had remained one of the strongest in the country “with exceptional growth and a competitive market for high end homes and apartments”.
Development sites are now coming onto the market as the owners decide to combine the block and gain traction for higher sales.
Tim Mumford of Stone Real Estate said the high-end apartment market in Manly was extremely buoyant.
“There have been some very noteworthy apartment sales over the past 12-24 months and this has likely been due to a shift in a lot of downsizers taking advantage of the favourable market conditions, selling the family home and making the move to Manly.”
