Hobart Myer basement to re-open on December 2 after flood damage

SHOPPERS of Hobart rejoice — the Myer basement will finally reopen on Friday, December 2.

SHOPPERS of Hobart rejoice — the Myer basement will finally reopen on Friday, December 2.

Hutchinson Builders will offically hand over the basement — home to shoes, handbags and clothing for younger set — to Hobart Myer manager Peter Monachetti tomorrow.

Rebuilt after the original building was destroyed by fire in 2007, the building was hit by a devastating flood in July.

Inundated after a wall of the Hobart Rivulet collapsed, the basement had to be stripped back to a concrete shell.

The floors above the basement in the Myer Liverpool St flagship store reopened five weeks after the flood, which also caused sections of the neighbouring Cat and Fiddle Arcade to collapse.

Now, four months on, Myer is ready to take ownership of a rebuilt basement complete with two new escalators, ceiling, floor tiles and lighting.

“The people of Hobart, the Myer team and myself have suffered some level of anxiety,’’ Mr Monachetti said.

“After living through the fire, the flood and evacuations and closing down of two stores, we will all breath a sigh of relief when we re-open on December 2.”

Mr Monachetti said he could not comment on the costs of the extensive renovations or the expected completion date of stage two of the development, which will house a 187-room Crowne Plaza Hotel and extend the Liverpool St Myer store through to the Murray St site.

The original completion date, before the rivulet collapse, was September 2017.

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Originally published as Hobart Myer basement to re-open on December 2 after flood damage