David Walsh unveils vision for new Motown hotel

HoMo out, Motown in as MONA owner David Walsh unveils updated vision for a $400m five-star hotel on Hobart’s River Derwent.

Artist impression of the propose Motown extension to Hobart's MONA.

HoMo is out. Motown is in.

Museum of Old and New Art owner David Walsh has unveiled an updated vision for a $400m five-star hotel on Hobart’s River Derwent and his promising a “centrepiece” library to revolutionise the way Australians see books.

However, the high-roller gambler and art collector has asked the Tasmanian government to act as guarantor for the bold project.

Artist renders of the proposed Motown extension to Hobart's MONA.

And he has dumped its original name, following a backlash from those who believed it more inappropriate than ironic.

“The idea was to get those that might have stayed here that might otherwise have had some anti-gay sentiment in their rainbow (to rethink),” Walsh said, as he announced a development application.

“But it turned out that I didn’t really have the right to call something HoMo when I’m not gay. It offended a few people because I guess I was being culturally insensitive.”

The 28th and, it seems almost final, version of Walsh’s planned landmark hotel resembles, in his own words, “a shopping trolley that looks a bit like an inverted suspension bridge”, reaching over the river.

The library will be the “fulcrum” of the hotel.

Guests will pay about $400 a night for one of the architecturally-striking hotel’s 176 rooms and will arrive from Hobart on Venetian-style motor ferries.

There will be room for a future high-roller casino, yet to obtain a licence, a grand theatre, multi-purpose conference centre for up to 1600 guests, and “special experience” rooms, playgrounds and a spa, all designed by prominent local and global modern artists.

However, Walsh said the library — to house his extensive collection of rare books, maps, documents and “weird stuff” — would be the “fulcrum”.

Guests will pay about $400 a night for one of the architecturally-striking hotel’s 176 rooms

“I want to do to libraries what I did to museums,” Walsh said. “I care about books. Most of the things that could be equated with my success happened as a result of good fortunate … But the few that didn’t, the few in which I had a part to play, were because I knew random things that proved to be useful.

“And I knew random things that proved to be useful ‘cos there was a library in Glenorchy, where I was raised and I spent a lot of time there. I spent a lot of time borrowing books. It didn’t so much change my life as it gave me the capacity to change my life.

“A lot of people don’t go to libraries … I’d like to change that. I think we’ve had a bit of success with regard to getting people into museums who otherwise mightn’t have.”

The state government was yet to decide whether to act as guarantor for the project. “Banks will come to the party but they need to know that the building is going to be completed,” he said.

“For the last little bit of the build we will need some cash to get us over the line. Let’s say there’s $100m to go, banks won’t lend you that money because they don’t know that the build is necessarily going to be completed.

“You need someone guaranteeing that process is going to happen. That’s what governments are for, as far as I’m concerned.”

The motivation for the hotel was to provide sufficient income to see MONA survive after his death.