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‘Unbelievable’: Clover’s council slashes outdoor dining hours at hotspot pub

By Michael Koziol

The City of Sydney council has ordered a popular pub to cease outdoor dining and drinking two hours earlier at 8pm after inspectors found beer kegs blocking the pavement and two neighbours complained.

Staff at the Old Fitzroy Hotel in Woolloomooloo – which is home to Australia’s last surviving pub theatre, and has become a trendy hotspot – will have to pack up all outdoor furniture and send drinkers inside before the clock strikes eight, which is pre-sunset at the height of summer.

The popular outdoor area of the Old Fitz will have to close at 8pm following an intervention by the City of Sydney council.

The popular outdoor area of the Old Fitz will have to close at 8pm following an intervention by the City of Sydney council.Credit: Janie Barrett

The crackdown comes as Sydney’s nanny-state rules are being criticised by Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s political rivals and Premier Chris Minns, who wants red tape reduced in favour of fun.

James Thorpe, whose Odd Culture Group owns the Old Fitz, accused the council of “doublespeak” and said he was only told about the June 27 decision on Friday.

“It’s pretty unbelievable,” he said. “We accept that neighbourhood amenity is really important, but we have a perfect compliance history. That we’re having to close the most popular area of the pub just as dinner service is starting is not right when we’ve traded out there for 18 years until 10pm.”

Under the complicated permit system, the pub must regularly renew two outdoor dining permits; one for its footpath tables and another for those on the reclaimed roadway. Its most recent application sought to expand the footpath dining area by five square metres.

The council said the hours of the outdoor area were curtailed after stray beer kegs were found on the pavement, in breach of conditions.

The council said the hours of the outdoor area were curtailed after stray beer kegs were found on the pavement, in breach of conditions.Credit: Janie Barrett

Council documents state that during a site visit by officers, “kegs were observed on the footpath along the building wall on Cathedral Street … it was unclear how long the kegs had been there”.

Furthermore, outdoor tables on Dowling Street were “observed to extend along the length of the planter bed to the pedestrian ramp”, whereas the approved plans required a gap.

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Council officers decided to reduce the outdoor closing time from 10pm to 8pm “due to observed non-compliances”.

The report also referenced the lone two public submissions on the application. Belinda Olsen of Cathedral Street said the pub’s patrons were “all over the shop in the weekend afternoons in particular” and pedestrians could barely get past.

“There is way too much space given to them already, and I object to them receiving any more space,” she wrote. “They are not being accountable for the area now, and they need to respect residents and pedestrians. Not to mention the noise generated from that many people standing and sitting around outside (as they get louder as they get drunker).”

The other complainant attached photographs of patrons congregating on the footpath, calling it a “public beer garden” which was really outdoor drinking, not outdoor dining.

But that is the exact arrangement Minns aims to encourage with a second tranche of vibrancy reforms to remove “useless” nightlife regulation. Last week the government announced approvals for footpath dining under the Liquor Act “will no longer have a blanket condition that stipulates patrons must be sitting down to consume alcohol in outdoor areas”.

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The City of Sydney said it was a strong supporter of al fresco dining, and had allowed more than 700 businesses to trade on footpaths and roadways since the pandemic, but they sometimes “face challenges” complying with their licence conditions.

The council said it had been in touch with the pub’s proprietor, who was lodging a review. “Once submitted, we will assess the issues as part of the review and continue to work closely with the proprietor in an effort to resolve the matter.”

Moore said she asked staff to expedite that review when it came to her attention on Friday, noting councillors don’t assess or determine individual development applications.

“I’m proud of the work we’ve done to support outdoor dining and cut red tape to make it easier for businesses to trade later,” she said. “It’s wonderful to see people out on the streets, connecting with each other and enjoying their neighbourhood while supporting local businesses.”

But Thorpe said it was “ridiculous that the onus is now on us” to fix what he described as the council’s mistake.

While the decision was made by planning staff, Moore’s political rivals at the upcoming local government election seized on the matter as emblematic of the council’s direction.

Liberal lord mayoral candidate Lyndon Gannon said: “Just because Clover is in bed by 8pm doesn’t mean the rest of Sydney has to be.”

Labor’s Zann Maxwell said the Old Fitz was buzzing despite the economic headwinds. “Clover’s fun police are at it again,” he said. “This is exactly the kind of thing council should be encouraging, not curtailing.”

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Original URL: https://www.watoday.com.au/national/nsw/unbelievable-clover-s-council-slashes-outdoor-dining-hours-at-hotspot-pub-20240817-p5k36s.html