Newtown ‘split in two’ over City of Sydney policy to boost late night trading
PLANS to revive Sydney’s night life by allowing businesses to trade from 7am to 10pm without council consent has ironically drawn a new line in the heart of the inner city’s live music scene.
Inner West
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PLANS to revive Sydney’s night life by drawing a line under lockout laws has ironically drawn a new line in the heart of the inner city’s live music scene.
An invisible boundary has been formed down the middle of King St, Newtown where venues on one side of the street are set to benefit from City of Sydney proposals to reignite the region’s night-time economy.
The changes would allow businesses to open from 7am to 10pm without council consent and would place the onus on residential developers who build near entertainment venues to manage noise issues.
But the measures won’t apply to the businesses on the southern side of the strip which come under the watch and rule book of Inner West Council.
Businesses in that council area would still need to lodge a development application to extend operating hours and would carry the cost of sound proof measures if complaints are lodged from residents in new developments.
Venues on the Inner West Council side including the Botany View Hotel and the Hideaway Bar have recently faced the threat of development while noise issues have led others, including the Sandringham Hotel, into closure.
Newtown Liquor Accord president Richard Adamson has requested a meeting with Inner West Council to promote a single set of rules to apply to King St.
“I think there would be a lot of frustration if there is one set of rules for one side of the street while they are different for the other.”
Inner West Council Mayor Darcy Byrne supported a review of the council’s policies for King St, along with rolling out the former Leichhardt Council’s policy for noise mitigation measures to Marrickville and Ashfield.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the City’s policy would encourage empty shops to be used by theatre groups without formal approval.
If adopted, plans could be submitted to the Greater Sydney Commission in late 2018.
