With a history of 127 years, the crumbling Katanning flour mill, after years of unattended and vacant, has been sold by local people for A $1 and has now been transformed into one of the best luxury hotels in Western Australia.
After a two-year multimillion-dollar renovation, the 22-bed Premier Mill Hotel will open in recent weeks
Unique accommodation options for visitors and a significant boost to the development of local tourism
The project is one of Western Australia`s most successful business chains, Dome cafe group`s CEO Nigel Oakey`s idea of renovating after the initial A $1 acquisition is a big project that Mr. Nigel Oakey originally expected to cost A $4 million but actually It`s far more than his budget.
Nigel Oakey decided to open a bar in the basement of the building, purchase a range of adjacent stores and ensure that hotel rooms meet five-star standards
"We could have controlled costs by creating standard rooms, but then we decided to do our best to create a truly luxurious experience for our guests," Nigel Oakey said.
Custom furniture retains the industrial feel of architecture, thanks in large part to the design of Fremantle architect Michael paroni, which is demonstrated by traditional features and unique stairs.
Cafes operate around the bottom of the building, while hotel rooms occupy the second and third floors of the building, priced between $250 and $350 a night.
Much of the infrastructure of the factory has been preserved, and each room shows different elements of the extraordinary history of the building
Built in 1891 by businessman, agronomist and statesman Frederick Henry Piesse, this three-story electric mill became the busiest part of the town at the time, and in fact it was born with the arrival of the Great Southern Railway in 1899.
Mr. Piesse was a local member of Parliament in 1890, a temporary deputy prime minister in 1899 and buried in Katanning in 1912
The factory operated until 1977, when it was a tourist centre, but it was empty for years, prompting local people to sell it for A $1
Liz Guidera, president of Shire, said: the rich history of architecture and the Piesse family has greatly contributed to the development of Katanning tourism and has provided 42 local jobs, as well as high-quality services for tourists and residents
Factory-style hotels together to experience a different style.
