The new owners of Hotel LA are nearing completion of a major renovation

Lachlan Furnell and a few silent partners quietly picked up the rundown Hotel LA in Brisbane last year and have almost completed a major rennovation.

The old Hotel LA on Caxton St before its makeover. Picture: Chris McCormack.

THE LORD ALFRED

The new owners of one of Brisbane’s oldest hotels are nearing completion on a major renovation aimed taking it more up-market.

Lachlan Furnell and a few silent partners quietly picked up the rather rundown Hotel LA last year, settling on the $4.5 million deal in October.

To give you some idea of how far things had fallen, it previously changed hands in 2009 for $7.65 million.

Anyway, since the start of this year Furnell and his team have overseen a dramatic makeover of the three-level venue, now renamed The Lord Alfred and celebrating its 150th birthday.

Illustration of Lachlan Furnell by Brett Lethbridge.

Furnell, who doubles as CEO of the Queensland Cricketers’ Club, was reluctant to talk yesterday about how much has been tipped in the project.

But it’s understood more than $2 million has gone into the Heritage-listed venue at the corner of Petrie Terrace and Caxton Street.

The work, across eight rooms and six separate bars, has involved significant upgrades to the kitchen and ripping up old carpets to reveal polished timber floorboards.

New lighting and paint, both inside and out, have also brightened things up.

Even the 16 or so pokie machines have been ditched and just a single Ubet terminal remains out the back.

The aim is attract more families, women and corporate clients to a pub which has historically been associated with footy fans downing loads of beer after games at nearby Suncorp Stadium.

“We’ve flipped the whole thing on its head,’’ Furnell told us.

“We want to attract a different audience. We want the locals coming in there and dining during the week.’’

The overhaul comes as other nearby traders, including those in The Barracks, hope to improve the area’s footpaths and lighting as part of an effort to encourage more business outside of game days.

LAUNCH PARTY

Furnell and his partners plan to host a huge party on August 10 to officially launch their new baby.

They’re expecting a 500-strong crowd to rock up, including plenty of corporate types and members of the Cricketers’ Club, who will get discounts to patronise the joint.

Later next month, the hotel will be opening up a subterranean private dining area for about 30 patrons.

Dubbed The Watchhouse, the rooms used to serve as the old police cells and date from the 1860s.

It was during that era that the pub got its name.

Queen Victoria’s son, Prince Alfred, became the first royal to visit Australia in 1868.

To commemorate the occasion, Brisbane’s Terrace Hotel was rebranded as The Prince Alfred and later rebadged Hotel Lord Alfred.

Now, after a few name changes over the decades, the wheel has turned and it’s back to the future.

“What’s old is new,’’ Furnell said. “We just want to expose the rawness of what the pub was, brighten it up and freshen it up.’’

In case all this wasn’t enough good news, Furnell told us he’s poised to release the Cricketers’ Club annual report this week and it’s back in the black.

That follows a few stormy years of losses and board dramas.