The former printing facility for The Examiner and Advocate newspapers in Launceston has been sold for $3.5 million after shutting down local printing operations.
Australian Community Media (ACM) closed the site last year and shifted production to Hobart in a move that reportedly eliminated 29 local jobs.
The sale comes amid a broader restructuring of ACM’s business model.
According to the ABC, the publisher plans to transition all of its newspapers to only weekly Saturday editions over the next seven years.
“We think the long-term future of publishing is for a really strong digital subscription product during the week and a really strong Saturday publication,” ACM managing director Tony Kendall said.
The 5,763-square-metre industrial site at 231 George Town Road in Rocherlea is understood to have been sitting vacant until the recent deal.
According to the Australian Financial Review, the property was snapped up by Austin Fagan, owner of national electrical business Progress Switchboards.
The site includes a 2,032-square-metre warehouse, a 221-square-metre office and a 400-square-metre undercover drive-thru dispatch area.
