Sydney CBD: new 24-hour entertainment precinct plans could allow pubs, clubs, cafes and nightclubs extended trading
Sydney will be the city that never sleeps under new plans for citywide entertainment precincts to allow bars and clubs, and even cafes and retail shops to open 24 hours a day.
NSW
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Sydney will be a city that never sleeps under new plans to allow CBD entertainment businesses to operate all night long.
City of Sydney Council has released plans for entertainment precincts in the CBD to allow bars, clubs, and even cafes and retail shops across the majority of the CBD to apply to open 24 hours a day.
The proposal also includes the option for venues to apply for an additional three hours of late-night trading to 4am for small bars and clubs in the CBD and the embattled Oxford St entertainment precinct, without a development application.
“Extended” trading hours are also on the cards for pubs, registered clubs and restaurants, meaning patrons will be able to be served longer into the night.
The new rules will apply to businesses and venues in the CBD Special Entertainment Precinct - which is the majority of the CBD, stretching south from Circular Quay to Central Station, and from Darling Harbour to Hyde Park.
The Daily Telegraph’s Future Sydney: Bradfield Oration campaigned for a 24-hour vision to revitalise the Sydney CBD, calling for increased trading hours and cuts to red tape for entertainment hubs.
The move is one of the biggest reforms to Sydney’s night-time economy since controversial lockout laws were imposed a decade ago.
Business Sydney executive director Paul Nicolaou said the entertainment precinct plans would make Sydney a “truly global, 24-hour city”.
“Sydney doesn’t need to be a city that shuts down at 9 o’clock, a time when comparable world cities are coming to life,” he said. “It also shows what the state government and council can achieve when they are on the same page on ways to bring people back to a revitalised CBD.
The business boss said the rise of a 24-hour CBD reignites the spark for 24-hour Sydney Metro services.
“As Business Sydney has long advocated, it is a further compelling reason for light rail to be made fare free from Circular Quay to Surry Hills,” he said. “Fare free light rail would encourage visitors to our wonderful city to travel further into the city to discover its retail, dining and entertainment districts.”
Newly re-elected City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the entertainment plan would make the CBD’s night-life standout on the global stage.
“On the back of lockouts and lockdowns it’s time to breathe new life into Sydney’s cultural life and night-time economy,” she told The Daily Telegraph. “Special Entertainment Precincts build on our extended trading hours and incentives for live entertainment by introducing sound controls that provide certainty for venues and cheaper licensing fees.”
The Lord Mayor also backed calls for a 24-hour Metro service to meet the demands of citygoers.
“This would not only help people to get around the city and enjoy all it has to offer,” she said. “It would help hospitality workers, many of whom are young women, feel more comfortable in working a late shift and getting home safely.”
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A council planner said the proposed special entertainment precincts stretching across the majority of the CBD would “allows venues to potentially trade later without the need for a DA”.
“24-hour trading would still be subject to a DA and trial period,” she said. “The trading hours permitted in Special Entertainment Precincts would be dependent on the type of business and the area it is located, reflecting our current approach.”
Under the proposal, larger venues and nightclubs will be allowed to open until 2am.
However, the same entertainment-based businesses would be able to open 24-hours a day, if they submit an application for 24-hour trading, and operate in the greenlit precincts.
The plan would also see retail shopfronts in the Special Entertainment Precinct allowed to apply to operate around the clock, unlike current restrictions which only allow late night shopping on Thursday nights.
“The proposed approach emphasises the quantity and diversity of night life areas in the area; extends the benefits of Special Entertainment Precincts to as many businesses as possible (and) avoids potential impacts of noise and anti-social behaviour coming from the over-intensification of night-time activity in small areas,” a council planner said.
“By adopting our tried and tested approach to trading hours but adapting it to align it the NSW Government’s Vibrancy Reforms, we are seeking to promote access to live music and performance across our area.”
The planner said the proposed Special Entertainment Precinct plan would also prevent the focus of “economic activity, investment, and patronage to limited designated areas at the expense of other areas”.
A City of Sydney planning committee, chaired by Cr Moore, approved the initial plan on Monday, before council will vote to place the plans on exhibition next week.
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Originally published as Sydney CBD: new 24-hour entertainment precinct plans could allow pubs, clubs, cafes and nightclubs extended trading
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