Historic Tonsley Hotel among the 64 properties to be razed by Torrens to Darlington tunnels

It was once the favourite watering hole among Chrysler factory workers, but now the historic Tonsley Hotel must call last drinks to make way for the North-South Corridor.

The historic Tonsley Hotel, once the preferred drinking spot for thirsty Chrysler factory workers, will be bulldozed to make way for the final stage of the North-South Corridor.

In an official Transport Department map, the pub is among 63 other businesses and homes marked for demolition in the initial stages of the $9.9bn Torrens to Darlington upgrade.

Tonsley Hotel General Manager Sam McInnes confirmed the pub received a letter from the government last week, saying the property had been identified for compulsory acquisition.

The Tonsley Hotel is going to be demolished for the Torrens to Darlington upgrade. Picture: Tom Huntley

“The project has been well publicised over the last few months about what is likely to happen, so we’ve sort of got our head around it,” Mr McInnes said.

Mr McInnes was still unsure if the pub would move location or close down altogether.

“We don’t know what the compensation will be and we are in the early days of what might happen,” he said.

The pub will have until early 2023 to hand over the keys.

The Tonsley Hotel first opened in 1966 under the South Australian Brewing Company in response to a surge in demand for pubs around Chrysler’s old Tonsley Park assembly plant, which opened two years earlier.

Workers at the factory would often enjoy knock-off drinks at the Tonsley Hotel or Marion Hotel.

A worker building an engine at the Tonsley Park Chrysler plant in 1967.

Aerial view of the Chrysler plant, which closed in 2008.

“Both the Tonsley and the Marion hotels were really built because of the demand from the workers of the Chrysler factory who probably all lived in that area,” Mr McInnes said.

After being taken over by Mitsubishi in 1980, the plant eventually closed in 2008.

When beverage giant Lion Nathan acquired the South Australian Brewing Company in 1993, the Tonsley Hotel was one of 104 pubs sold back to family operators under the famous “Manco Deal”.

The deal was orchestrated by former SA Hotels Association president Peter Hurley, who eventually bought the Tonsley pub himself in 1997.

The pub has continued to operate under the Hurley Group since then.

Despite the hotel’s rich history, Mr McInnes said they would not get in the way of progress.

“The North-South Corridor is an important roadway for our state and the government needs to come up with the best option to make it as efficient as they can,” he said.

“I think you need to accept the reality of the situation and hope they they’ve got the right solution.”

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