The current owner of The Espy, Elisa Sofo (as listed in company documents), is moving on after 13 years. According to The Australian, Sofo is keen to retain the freehold title but is offering a long time lease for the next buyer.
It would be expected that the next owner will maintain the music in the longest running music venue in the country. Previous attempts by developers to turn the 1729sqm site into apartments met with fierce opposition from local residents.
The ads for the sale maintain that The Espy makes money out from a number of sources. Aside from the live performances, there are the bars, functions, Espy Kitchen, bottle shop and venue hire for location filming.
Meantime, it’s business as usual for the 1,752-capacity rock room. Among upcoming shows are Kings of the Sun’s album launch this Friday, Grandmaster Flash’s only Melbourne show on Thursday February 27, and the Japan Music Festival on Thursday April 3 with sets by JILL, 101A, Kaimokujishō and Sparky Quano! from the Japanese underground music scene.
