Fashion gurus’ $6m plans fail the pub test
The Village Inn, built in 1854.
Alemais fashion couple Chris Buchanan and Lesleigh Jermanus have lost their Land and Environment Court battle to close Paddington’s Village Inn and turn it into a fashion store.
Senior commissioner Susan Dixon ruled the change of use did not serve the public interest.
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Inside the pub. Photo: Supplied
Woollahra Council lawyers HWL Ebsworth defeated the case presented by solicitors Mills Oakley, with the judgment noting the application had failed to provide satisfactory evidence that the pub was unviable.
Dating back to the 1850s, the Rose and Crown (and Durty Nelly’s) was one of the earliest hotels in the military barracks.
The current Glenmore Rd hotel was built in 1884, possibly the longest continual use after three other pubs were converted into luxury houses.
The Paddington Society led the objections, which totalled 236 compared to just three in support.
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Chris Buchanan.
Lesleigh Jermanus. Picture: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images
Buchanan and Jermanus, who in 2022 paid $6.22m for the hotel that generates $2.35m in annual revenue, advised that if the application was not approved “then the pub use is likely to cease and the land will lay fallow, and that is not orderly and efficient use of the land”.
However, The Intersection landlord Theo Onisforou told the court that the pub use was a longstanding, vibrant addition, and “he would buy it in a heartbeat”.
