Jury Still Out On Palace Development Proposal

By Edward Steinbeck on May 30, 2013 in News

Long the bane of many Coogee residents due to its late trading hours and the behaviour of its sometimes intoxicated patrons, the Beach Palace Hotel recently lodged a development application that will no doubt be met with opposition despite the downsizing of its licensed operation and the significant decrease in proposed trading hours.

Currently operating as a pub/restaurant/nightclub over three levels, according to the development application the new look Palace will include “alterations and additions to the ‘Beach Palace Hotel’ to provide for a mixed use development comprising of a ground level pub/restaurant (opening hours 7am to 12 midnight, 7 days a week) and car par parking for 26 vehicles with 3 levels above containing 19 residential units (variation to floor space ratio and height controls).”

The development application for proposed changes to the Coogee Beach Palace Hotel site was on public exhibition from April 17 until May 2 and, according to a Randwick City Council spokesperson, twelve public submissions were received during that time.

The Randwick City Council spokesperson said that Council officers are now closely considering the application. In particular, Council will “be carefully looking at the impacts on parking and traffic in the area; potential impacts on the heritage-listed dome on the top of the Coogee Palace Hotel; potential noise levels and general amenity of the area; and likely impacts on the Coogee Beach promenade; as well as all other relevant matters when considering this development application.”

In 2010, the nearby Coogee Bay Hotel had a proposed development application knocked back by the NSW Government and Randwick City Council after widespread public condemnation, but the scale of the Beach Palace Hotel’s proposal is hardly comparable.

The Beach Palace Hotel has had its fair share of problems in the past. In July 2010, the Land and Environment Court Justice Terry Sheahan found the venue’s third floor, known as the Aquarium, was operating illegally as a hotel. In his summation, the judge said the Aquarium, which was authorised as a restaurant, had shifted in its primary function from serving food to serving drinks.

“I have concluded that the Aquarium is now more hotel than restaurant. The primary service provided to its patrons is the sale of drinks, including alcohol, supported by the provision of food services and entertainment.” Justice Sheahan said.

Justice Sheahan ordered that the Aquarium cease trading as a hotel by the end of the year in question.

The downsizing of its licensed operation and the significant reduction of trading hours appears to be a white flag from Beach Palace Hotel management, who have had constant battles with an unrelenting group of Coogee locals for the past ten years. The changing demographic of the area and increased cost of living also appears to have had an effect on its operations.

The Coogee Precinct committee in particular has often been at loggerheads with the Beach Palace Hotel and while they’re keen to see the pub downsized they still have reservations about the development.

”The Precinct supports the plan to replace the pub use with residential use but would need to know more about what type of residential form is envisaged – e.g. strata, holiday, long term, short term accommodation etc. – and more about the proposed height increase, the heritage elements, parking and traffic issues, as this is a highly used pedestrian area on the beautiful foreshore area, before being able to comment further,” Coogee Precinct secretary Carla Giannakopoulos said.

Despite attempts to get an official response from the Beach Palace Hotel, at the time of print no correspondence had been received.

The Beach Palace Hotel is part of the Palace Leisure Group, which also includes the Empire Hotel in Kings Cross, the Roxy Hotel in Parramatta and the Beachcomber Hotel on the Central Coast.