Bathurst’s Citigate Mount Panorama sold to Avi Rubinstein-Andrew Schwartz consortium in RBS sell-off

The Citigate Mount Panorama hotel, which overlooks the Bathurst race track, has been sold to Avi Rubinstein from St Ives in Sydney and Andrew Schwartz from Hawthorn in Melbourne.

Rubinstein is a former managing director of FAI Property Services Ltd and has been active for many years in the accommodation industry in Australia and New Zealand.

Andrew Schwartz is the former Babcock & Brown Australian property head.

The four directors of the purchasing company are listed as Rubinstein, Andrew Schwartz, Alan Schwartz from Toorak and the Abacus head, Frank Woolf from Cammeray in Sydney. Andrew, Alan and his wife Carole, are all on the board of the private equity Qualitas Property Partners.

The hotel was listed for sale in May last year by the court-appointed receivers, The Royal Bank of Scotland subsidary, BOS International (Australia) Ltd held the first of three registered mortgages. Babcock & Brown held the third registered mortgage.  

Bathurst councillor Ross Thompson told the Western Advocate in November last year that the hotel was available for a “steal”.

The four-star hotel, which features 135 residential apartments over seven levels, has been in receivership since opening its doors to the public in September 2009, “a period marred by the economic downturn,” according to the investment report.

The accommodation was entirely sold out for last year’s Bathurst 1,000.

Rydges has taken over as managers of the resort and is promoting it as the “new Rydges Mount Panorama Bathurst” on the front page of its website, with bookings available from the end of February. Rooms start at $160 per night.

Mirvac Hotels previously managed the hotel as the Citigate Mount Panorama. It had been listed through CRBE agent Rob Cross. The court appointed receivers date back to 2007.