Rainbow House Club Smith St application to open until 5am angers ‘tortured’ Fitzroy residents

A Fitzroy bar fighting to stay open all night has angered locals who claim young children are exposed to drugs, urine and vomit.

Revellers line up to get into Smith St venue Rainbow House Club Fitzroy.

A Fitzroy bar known for live drag shows is fighting for the right to party all night despite residents complaining its patrons leave streets rife with urine, vomit and syringes.

Smith St mainstay Rainbow House Club is in a court dance-off with Yarra Council in a bid to extend its weekend operating hours until 5am.

Rainbow management is seeking a ruling from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal after the council failed to make a decision in the time required.

The council, on January 18, voted to allow the heaving nightclub to operate until 2am Thursday to Saturday provided it capped patron numbers at 100 and stopped revellers from accessing outdoor areas after midnight.

However, objectors told the tribunal on Monday that residents near the club were already “tortured” with noise and sleep was “impossible” while the venue was open.

Fiona Ingram, representing a group of 17 locals, said the ongoing disruptions to residents’ sleep had affected their mental health and ability to work and study.

She said the problem was severe for Little Smith Street residents who could hear and feel loud, base music and “wolf whistling during drag shows” in their bedrooms.

They also had to listen to patrons screaming, laughing and singing from a beer garden, external walkway and toilets at rear of the club.

Vomiting, urinating and drug use also took place in Little Smith Street and families with young children had been exposed to used syringes, Ms Ingram said.

Rainbow House Club, which describes itself as offering “queer excellence five nights a week”, currently opens until 1am From Wednesday to Sunday.

The venue is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Under current permit conditions the club’s courtyard dining, beer garden and external toilets at were meant to close at midnight.

However, Ms Ingram said those rules weren’t followed and repeated complaints to the council over two years had failed to force the club to abide by its permit.

The council submitted Smith St revellers were already served with plenty of options including Yah Yah’s and the Peel Hotel meaning the extended operating hours at Rainbow were not required.

The council also submitted there were “issues” with punters going back and forth from Rainbow and the Peel which both “cater to the LGBTQIA+ community”.

In response, Rainbow submitted it could alleviate residents’ concerns with added measures including increased security.

Rainbow House Club is expected to put forward its case on Tuesday.

The matter continues.

[e-mail]