Gympie Royal Hotel owners take over the Australian Hotel after February floods

A heritage-listed Gympie hotel has been taken over by the owners of a popular Mary St pub, after it was destroyed in the February floods.

A heritage-listed Gympie hotel has been taken over by the owners of a popular Mary St pub, after it was destroyed in the February floods.

Royal Hotel owner Ken Stone began leasing the Australian Hotel on Lady Mary Terrace only weeks before his Mary St pub was smashed by flood waters nearly 23 metres high.

Mr Stone told the Gympie Times on Thursday clean up and reconstruction efforts at the Royal were ongoing, but in the wake of destruction, some staff had been relocated to the Australian Hotel.

After the flood water had receded, the Royal Hotel was left a shell of its former self, with the ceiling of the first floor destroyed, wiring exposed, and severe damage to the interiors. Photo: Elizabeth Neil

Jasmyn Miller, former second-in-command at the Royal, was appointed as the new manager for the Australian when it began trading under the new lease on Tuesday, March 16.

She said business was booming at the Australian, but back in Mary St, the Royal Hotel was still in shambles.

“I was at the Royal earlier today before I started here … at the moment we’re trying to clean up, ready for rebuilding,” she said.

Flood waters, which peaked at 23 metres, inundated the first floor of the Mary St hotel and reached knee-deep on the second floor, Mr Stone told the Gympie Times on March 1.

He said was not prepared for the water to reach above the first floor, and as a result, the business lost practically everything and needed to be gutted.

February 26, 2022: Flood waters, which had not reached their peak at the time of this photo, turned Mary St into a river when the water reached more than 22 metres. Photo: Elizabeth Neil

On Thursday, he said the pub would not be reopened for at least another two months, and leasing the Australian Hotel came as “good timing”.

The lease began a month before the floods hit, and the plan was originally to have a second business under his belt, but after the Royal was taken under, the Australian became a safety net for staff who needed to keep their jobs.

“It wasn’t something I wasn’t going to pursue too hard because (the owner) wanted too much money for it,” he said.

“But then the opportunity arose for staff to get working again so it’s kind of the thing that pushed us over the line.”

As well as destroying the Royal, the flood had also paused progress on a bottle shop he intended to open across from the hotel on Monkland St.

Royal Hotel owner Ken Stone said he plans were in place to turn a building on the corner of Reef St and Monkland St into a bottle shop. Photo: Elizabeth Neil

“We already lease the building, and we just got council consent to turn it into a bottle shop,” he said.

“We were literally just about to submit an application when the floods came through.

“It all depends on liquor licencing and when they approve it. We’re really lucky we’ve already got council consent.”

Meanwhile, at the Australian Hotel, Miss Miller said changes had already begun with new chefs, and bistro service seven days a week.

“We’ve taken all our specials from the Royal and made them for the Australian,” she said.

“We do have big plans. I think we’ll maybe look at some fine dining upstairs, and maybe the kids playground from the Royal can come here.”

The Australian Hotel has also extended its hours, with closing time now at 9pm instead of 7pm.

“We’ve got a really good crew … and we’re really excited to take over here.”

Australian Hotel manager Jasmyne Miller said “big plans” were in place for the Australian Hotel after it was taken over by the owners of the Royal Hotel in Mary St. Photo: Elizabeth Neil