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Sotiria Liangis opens up on ‘magnificent’ Manuka hotel – the cinemas, what’s changed and the critics

The developer of the Manuka Hotel has confirmed that it will only offer one cinema after operators still recovering from the pandemic and hit by the streaming revolution refused to invest in a new multiplex.

Sotiria Liangis also informed Region that a hotel operator had been engaged and elaborated on the changes she had made to the plans, stressing that the building would adhere to the Crown lease and the approved conditions.

She also opened up about recent criticism of her and the development, saying some people did not understand what she was trying to achieve with a project about which she was passionate.

Mrs Liangis said she was as disappointed as anyone about Event Cinemas (formerly Greater Union) being unwilling to continue its association with the site, but the company lost $200 million during the pandemic and was not investing anywhere in new theatres.

She tried Hoyts and the independents, but none were willing to get on board, telling her a new venture would not be viable, especially with new release films available online.

One 80-seat theatre has been salvaged, to be run by the hotel, but Event will provide a new release film for public screenings.

“It’s not compulsory for me to build cinemas, but I wanted to really have a cinema and I created one cinema,” Mrs Liangis said.

“It’s going to be open to the public and my hotel operators can use it anytime they want. It’s very luxurious, very lovely.

“That’s what I have done at my own discretion.”

The adjacent area where the other three theatres were to be located will be open space.

Mrs Liangis said that, according to industry figures she had seen, the Canberra market was saturated, with many screens nearby in Woden and the city.

Other changes to the plans include the siting of the pool and an uncovered outdoor garden on the Franklin Street side.

The pool was originally going to be on level two in an enclosed recreation area facing Franklin Street, but Mrs Liangis said her neighbours along Franklin Street had concerns about noise and overshadowing, which she rejects.

Nonetheless, the pool and recreation facilities were moved to the basement at the Cathedral end, and a landscaped terrace garden with outdoor furniture would now occupy the setback on Franklin Street.

Facilities such as the pool, sauna and gym would be for hotel guests to use, but the public could also gain access through a membership scheme.

The 192-room hotel itself would be a five-star state-of-the-art facility operated by a big international company, but Mrs Liangis could not say who until the company made the formal announcement.

“They’ll be the ones to advertise when they’re all done and ready, but they’re very excited,” she said.

“They really believe it’s one of the best [buildings] …. if you’re looking at the design, the main entrance, it looks absolutely magnificent.”

Mrs Liangis was working with the hotel company’s interior designer on the fit-out.

The hotel would also include dining and bar facilities, meeting rooms, a ballroom and retail shops, which would all be left to the hotel operator to run.

The building would be completed by the end of the year, followed by the fit-out and then a grand opening early in 2026. She hoped people would appreciate it.

Mrs Liangis, 85, has been in the development game since 1967 and has a fearsome reputation.

She is on site most days, sometimes with the help of a wheelchair because of her knees, and works at a large desk, covered in dog-eared plans marked with her ‘scribble’, in the corner of the completed Stage 1 of the hotel.

While she has the well-earned reputation as a tough operator in a tough industry, recent media attention has irked her.

“It’s upsetting when people are making comments and they’re not true,” she said.

People often forget that she was the one who saved the previous building’s cinema and installed the first multiplex in 1989 and 1991.

“There were two little elderly ladies sitting on the couch, and I can hear them saying, ‘Isn’t that sad, the cinema is closing down,’” she said.

“And I come home and I say, ‘Why are we closing them down? Why can’t we keep the cinema running?’ And we did exactly that.”

Mocking descriptions of her pride and joy as ‘faux Parisian’, dark and sterile belittled what she believes will be an architectural achievement that will stand the test of time.

Mrs Liangis said no one had told her the building was a bad building, although, as usual, some of the online commentary has not been kind.

“Everybody says, ‘Wow!’” she said.

“Nobody has come along to say this is a bad building. This is a solid concrete building that will stand up for the next 300 years. That’s the way I wanted it.”

Solid concrete walls and double glazing will insulate guests from each other and the heavy traffic on Canberra Avenue. The ground-level floor-to-ceiling glazing is 10mm unbreakable laminated glass, ensuring internal quiet and oodles of natural light.

The structure itself is going nowhere, supported by dozens of extra concrete piers sunk deep into the ground and 100 cubic metres of mass concrete.

Mrs Liangis said it was her building and she wanted it to be of the highest quality.

“They’re my properties. I’m not selling them to sell the problem to someone else,” she said.

“I don’t want to go near it for the next 10 years to try to see if something goes wrong.

“We’re not building that way. We’re building solidly and it’s supposed to really stand up for many years without any problems.”

Mrs Liangis said people crucify you, but the hotel would help Manuka 100 per cent.

“You sit it back and you say, ‘Look at what we have created,’” she said. “Something wonderful, something for people to use for many years to come.”

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