Jim Eddy of the Jamberoo Action Park empire has expanded his business by acquiring one of Wollongong’s most iconic buildings, the Wollongong Surf Club complex from the Kollaras Group.
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Mr Eddy, who also owns Wollongong’s Belmore All-Suite Hotel, said after looking at the commercial site for some time he was finally able to grab it for a nice price.
Both parties denied reports the sale was negotiated for $9 million, nor would they disclose the official amount exchanged.
“We think it’s one of the most significant assets on the foreshore of the Illawarra,” said Mr Eddy
“It was on the market some four or five years ago and we looked at it then but we thought it was too expensive. [Now] the timing was right and the price was right so we though we’d get involved.”
Kollaras Group chief operating officer John Kollaras said his company’s focus would remain on their core business of beverage and tobaccco operations.
The family-run company will also continue to own and operate The Meatery and City Beach Function Centre, within the Marine Drive complex.
“In parallel to this, we will continue to seek out and invest in property and other areas of opportunity,” he said.
Meanwhile Mr Eddy said he has a lot of ideas to upgrade the building with “great potential” and is currently preparing plans to go before Wollongong City Council in the next couple of months.
“We haven’t yet finalised the concepts we have in mind for it but we’re working through that at the moment with landscapers, architects and other people,” he said.
Mr Eddy said with his company’s experience and ideas for the iconic building they could “bring a lot to the table”.
“There’s a lot of synergies in operating this property, so we think it’s going to be a great asset to what we do,” he said.
The Kollaras family were given approval in 1999 to develop the council owned land where the original dilapidated Wollongong City Beach Surf Club sat.
Construction didn’t take shape until 2002 and 2003 at a cost of around $5 million.