General News
25 October, 2024
One of our last pubs hits the market
THERE are fears that another of our country pubs could disappear if a buyer isn’t found for the Maroona Hotel.
THERE are fears that another of our country pubs could disappear if a buyer isn’t found for the Maroona Hotel.
The popular Maroona pub is a bit or a rarity these days and has survived where many other country pubs haven’t.
In recent years we’ve seen the closure of the Wickliffe, Elmhurst, Buangor and Willaura hotels as well as pub in Ararat like the Shire Hall, Rex and Terminus.
Maroona publican Margaret Wilson has been in business for 19 years, but told the Advocate it is time for someone new to take over.
“I’ve made some great friends here, lifelong friends. And I’ve been very lucky with staff but it’s time to get out.
“I’m just getting tired. I’m nearly 73 and I need some time to do my thing,” she said.
“There’s a lot to do in a pub, the cleaning, the restocking, the reordering, you’ve got to have fresh fruit and vegetables and meat even if it is a quiet weekend.
Margaret said it was important for the hotel to remain in business.
“To me, it is important for this to remain a hotel. I don’t really want someone buying it and turning it into a house,” she said.
Margaret said the Maroona Hotel has given her many happy memories.
“I met my husband Owen here but he died five years later. This place has a lot of good and some bad memories for me,” she said.
The pub is currently on the market for $350,000.
Mayor Bob Sanders said the local pub is the lifeblood of the community.
“You only need to look at what is happening in Ararat now. We’re back to one pub and I wonder what happened to the old timers who used to drink at the pubs that have closed.
“As far as a small community like Maroona, Willaura, Elmhurst, the pub was a central part of the community.
“Once the local pub has gone, the community doesn’t really have a central place to go for a meal, drink and socialising.
“I grew up and the pub was the place where you went, it was the social place to meet and now we don’t have so many places where we can do that,” Cr Sanders said.
Australian Hotels Association Chief Executive Officer Paddy O’Sullivan said country pubs are the lifeblood of many communities.
“Pubs are the centre of their local communities particularly in regional Victoria.
“Pubs make an enormous economic and social contribution to Victoria, and innovative ideas like community purchase just show how important pubs are to local communities, and the vital role that pubs play in community life,” he said.
Margaret Wilson told the Advocate there has been some interest from people keen to purchase her business.
A group of local residents have been actively discussing the possibility of forming a consortium to buy the pub to keep it open and in community hands.
While the idea of a consortium is in its early days, the AHA’s Paddy O’Sullivan says community owned pubs appear to be working well in other communities.
“There are a number of different operating models for community ownership of regional pubs.
“In northwest Victoria towns such as Sea Lake, Patchewollock and Nandaly have various management models that work well in their communities. They are great meeting places for local residents and have established themselves as tourist destinations,” he said.