The William Farrer Hotel to be sold to Harvest Hotels

David Barnhill has decided to sell the Peter Street pub to Harvest Hotels, which currently owns multiple venues throughout the state.

"The rumours are true. Everything settles on July 12," Mr Barnhill told The Daily Advertiser.

"We weren't planning on selling, but we had some people come knock on the door and approach us.

"We liked the idea that it was going to be confidential ... once it got pretty serious, we made the decision over a matter of days, and it happened pretty quick."

Mr Barnhill and his father bought the pub together in January 2001. He said it's been "really special" to own and run one of the city's most iconic pubs.

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"We've had a lot of fun," Mr Barnhill said. "I love coming to work every day. I have had some crack staff over the past 20 years, and we have developed a great team."

Mr Barnhill said there had been too many great memories to list but said a lot of the success came down to a few factors.

"I think when people come to a venue, they want to be served, and they want to be respected," he said.

"All of our staff serve properly, they pour a beer properly, and the presentation is good.

"What we've got works. The bottom line is we have a great team of staff ... all staff are guaranteed their jobs if they want it."

Mr Barnhill said it's been fantastic to see how many people around the Riverina have met their partners at the Farrer.

"We have had a lot of marriages come from here," he said.

Mr Barnhill has also been proactive in the Wagga Liquor Accord space, working on multiple initiatives to make pubs and hotels safer for their patrons.

He said when they originally bought the Farrer, there was a lot of negative media attention regarding safety up the main street, but now hotels in Wagga have "cleaned up their act".

One of the measures he is most proud of is the Barred From One Barred From All campaign enforced by the accord.

Patrons who get banned from one pub are banned from all the other establishments in Wagga, and any attempts to sidestep the ban will see another six months added to the punishment.

"There is only 0.05 per cent of people that cause problems, and that's part of life, but if you get rid of those people, then there's no problem," Mr Barnhill said.

"If someone tries to come in underage or use false ID when they're 17, they can't come into the venue until they're 19. I think that's a great initiative."

Mr Barnhill said there is a lot to be proud of when he looks back on the last two decades.

"The Gold Cup Calcutta has grown from about $13,000 to $150,000, and our punters is in its seventh year now and has grown from 29 teams to 140," he said.

"I'll still run the punters club for the new owners."

Harvest Hotels also owns Brady's Railway Hotel at Albury, the Milestone Hotel at Dubbo and two pubs in Tamworth.

Mr Barnhill said once the sale has settled, he will take a few weeks before finding a new project, adding the settlement price is confidential.

But he promises still to be a familiar face around Wagga and the Farrer.

"We've had a lot of support from the community," he said. "We are really appreciative of our loyal customer base.

"It's been a great ride."

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