UOW sells Marketview to owner with plans to operate it as a hotel

The new owner of the building has applied for a liquor licence for a restaurant as part of the hotel.

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An operator is yet to be confirmed publicly, however the application states that the hotel will comprise 150 motel-style rooms.

The restaurant would operate on the ground floor in the southern wing of the hotel, but the application also includes hotel rooms as part of the licenced premises.

The restaurant would cater to up to 134 people and would include background music and live music similar to an acoustic guitar.

The application proposes the restaurant would operate from Monday to Sunday from 10am to midnight and that food would be available at all times.

The building was originally built as a hotel in the early 2000s as part of plans by St Michael's Anglican Church to raise funds to preserve St Michael's Cathedral.

Designed by Sydney architects Archtiectus, the building features a split design, with a glassed-in bridge connecting the two wings, preserving views of the cathedral down Market Street to the west.

The hotel was operated as an Ibis by Accor, which also operates the Novotel Northbeach.

In 2011, the University purchased the site for an undisclosed amount to counter a lack of student accommodation in Wollongong. The building first welcomed students at the start of the 2012 academic year.

In 2021, as closed borders prevented international students from coming to Australia and lockdowns kept domestic students at home, UOW put Marketview up for sale, along with Weerona College and International House.

UOW withdrew International House from the market in early 2022 as students returned and confronted an acute rental crisis, while Marketview and Weerona College were sold.

Weerona College has since reopened as privately operated student accommodation.

A sale price for Marketview has not been disclosed publicly and The Mercury understands that the transaction is still in the settlement phase.

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