13 hours ago
Drought-affected Victorian town of Penshurst has 'one shot' to save its last pub
Surely there could be no worse fate than a country town losing its last pub in the middle of a drought.
That's why a south-west Victorian community is banding together in the hope of raising $1 million to buy the town's last remaining watering hole.
So far, the 670 residents of Penshurst, a rural town about 300 kilometres west of Melbourne, have raised $250,000 to bring the Penshurst Hotel into community hands.
But the group still has hundreds of thousands of dollars left to raise, with little time left.
At the turn of the century, there were six pubs in Penshurst, but now only the Penshurst Hotel remains.
The pub went on the market in April 2025, and the community has tried to buy it out of fear it will be shut down or turned into something else by new owners.
The group's offer for the property has been accepted by the owners, but sales contracts are yet to be signed.
The ABC understands there have been four other offers on the property from potential buyers across the state, including from Melbourne and Ballarat.
Ray Allan moved to Penshurst eight months ago and is spearheading the campaign to buy the historic bluestone pub.
"Pubs are critical things in small towns," he said.
The pub is open a few nights a week, but only for drinks after the bistro closed in January 2024.
The closest pubs are a half-hour drive away.
Mr Allan, who is also a member of the Penshurst Progress Association, said the pub was vital for locals' mental health.
"This is not about saving the pub," he said.
Across the state, a growing number of pubs have been taken over by community groups.
Just this month, 83 community members pitched in to buy the Maroona Hotel near Ararat after the owner put it up for sale.
Mr Allan said about 40 Penshurst residents met in April to discuss collective ownership of the Penshurst Hotel, with people invited to buy a unit share worth $5,000 each.
In six weeks, Mr Allan said about 30 shareholders committed a total of $250,000.
Once the sales contract is signed, the group has about six weeks to raise a further $200,000 to close the deal.
Mr Allan said he was feeling confident the necessary funds would be raised, but there was "also a bit of a niggle" of doubt.
If successful, the group hopes to raise yet another $650,000 for repairs to the 1850s-era building, including refurbishing the kitchen and dining areas to reopen the pub for meals.
The Penshurst Hotel would initially be operated by the community, with the option of leasing it to a third-party operator down the line.
Penshurst resident Kate Orchard said many of the people who had contributed were farmers who were battling the drought.
"They are doing it so tough with feed costing what it does, but they realise how important this was and [found] that little bit of money," Ms Orchard said.
"The front street looks like a smile with the front teeth gone.
"This is a one-shot go … if this fails, we probably won't ever get it off the ground again."
Eileen Copeland operates the local post office and is among those who contributed to the fund.
She said she hoped a successful pub would bring more people to town.
"The more people who stop in the town, the more likely they're going to wander in here and buy something from me," she said.
Australian Hotels Association chief executive Paddy O'Sullivan said community-owned pubs that pitched themselves as a tourist destination, as well as being a local hotspot, were best placed to succeed.
Mr O'Sullivan said communities needed to be prepared for the challenges involved in running a pub, such as staffing and the long hours, and ensuring it was financially viable.
But he said he believed the trend of more establishments entering public ownership would continue.
"It's great to see," he said.
