The Balmain and Rozelle venues allowed to trade until 2am

Bars and pubs will be allowed to trade until 2am in Balmain and Rozelle after the Inner West Council voted through its new special entertainment precincts, which include allowing Darling Street to follow in the footsteps of Enmore Road.

The council voted last Tuesday to pull the trigger on the six new precincts, including Marrickville Road and New Canterbury Road in Dulwich Hill, Marrickville and Illawarra roads in Marrickville, the industrial area near Addison Road, and Leichhardt’s Norton Street and Parramatta Road.

Lindsay Egan, owner of Corner Bar in Rozelle, is looking to extend his trading hours to 2am and expand live music.Credit: Max Mason-Hubers

When the draft plans were shown to the public for feedback, the suggestion from council was only to extend trading hours for businesses in the six precincts to midnight, but at the meeting the plan was extended to 2am on Friday and Saturdays.

Businesses within the precincts will also be able to have outdoor dining until midnight on those nights, and host small-scale artistic events including live music without the need for council approval.

Of the 78 submissions responding to the request for feedback, only 13 supported trading after midnight. Most favoured midnight or earlier closures, and some raised concerns about noise impacting nearby residents.

Ultimately, the council found the benefits outweighed local concerns.

Rozelle’s Corner Bar owner Lindsay Egan is one of the operators considering opening until 2am in warmer months and extending live music to three days a week.

He said getting young people to go out in Balmain and Rozelle would be key to the local hospitality industry surviving, and the special entertainment precinct was a step in the right direction.

“It does need revitalisation … we speak to people who say ‘we stay home and drink wine as opposed to going out and spending $60 on a bottle,’ ” he said.

“Young people are a big part of it. They’re fun, they like staying out late and are open to trying new products and new ideas – they are supportive of live music and late-night trade. They don’t want to be curled up in front of the fireplace at 8pm.”

The Enmore Road precinct has operated since 2022 and is still “going gangbusters”, Mayor Darcy Byrne said.

“We are about to see a genuine renaissance of Sydney’s nightlife based here in the people’s republic of the inner west,” he said.

“We are asking the NSW government to gazette these new precincts immediately so we can help breathe new life into Sydney’s hospitality scene.”

Announcing the plan last year, Byrne said it would “bring Balmain back to life”.

Special entertainment precincts are a state government initiative, which began with the Enmore Road trial and has since expanded. Burwood and Fairfield are both set to get special entertainment precinct status later this year.

Under the policy, which councils can access on a voluntary basis, there are more favourable trading conditions for live music venues, restaurants and bars within a defined area.

For example, live music venues in such precincts typically receive a two-hour trading extension on nights when live music is offered, and one hour on other nights.

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