Victoria Hotel site cleared and artwork salvaged

Liquidators of the insolvent company which owns the former Victoria Hotel say they are pleased Marine Terrace will be back to normal this weekend — just two weeks after a suspicious blaze destroyed the hotel. A spokesman for FTI Consulting, which is acting as liquidator, said the site was expected to be fully cleared by the end of this week, with no further work plans for the site. “The property is being marketed for sale nationally,” he said. “There are currently a number of interested parties negotiating to buy the entire landholding or parts of it.” The building was bought in 2008 by Geraldton Investments Pty Ltd, which intended to develop the block before the company fell into financial ruin. At the request of the City of Greater Geraldton, demolition contractors have salvaged artwork and parts of the building “for historical purposes”. These include some of the original stonework of the 159-year-old hotel and well-known artworks from the newer Blue Heelers Tavern facade. City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn said the City had acquired the materials to preserve the memory of the site, and would look into ways to display them. “We understand the community sentiment towards this much-loved community icon,” he said. “The Geraldton Regional Art Management Committee will be asked to generate ideas as to how the stones can be used on display to the community to help pay homage to the building.” The building was brought down on Saturday, a little more than a week after it was destroyed by an inferno, which took firefighters almost 10 hours to contain. A police investigation into the fire “remains unsolved at this stage”, according to Det-Sen. Sgt Bruce McDonald. Owners of nearby businesses have expressed frustration at the impact of road closures on Marine Terrace trade, and said the fire was not surprising given repeated sightings of trespassers entering the vacant building. The liquidators have said they were reviewing security measures to prevent unlawful access to other buildings within the landholding. “We have also arranged for additional security patrols,” the spokesman said. “As liquidators acting on behalf of the property owners, we want to thank the retailers and other businesses on Marine Terrace for their patience and understanding over the past week.” The site was adopted on Geraldton’s Municipal Heritage Register in 1998 and is part of a Statewide Hotel Survey completed in 1997. But the hotel’s owners cannot be charged with demolition by neglect because the site did not have State heritage listing. A spokesperson for the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage said while any member of the public could nominate a site, the old Victoria Hotel had never been considered for entry.