Newtown Hotel $3m upgrade
The Newtown Hotel could re-open after a $3million facelift.
An application seeking to re-fit 147-176 King St — and the adjoining building at 178 King St — as a two-storey bar and dining area complete with original colonial-style wrap-around verandahs has been lodged with the City of Sydney.
The application, submitted to council on behalf of Newtown Hotel Holdings, makes extensive note of the hotel’s early history from the 1800s-1900s, but in 15 pages of historical documentation failed to make any mention of its significance as a gay and lesbian venue.
The venue has been shut since November 2007 when building owners Newtown Colonial Hotel abruptly evicted the former licensee David McHugh from the premises with less than 24-hours notice.
Negotiations between the two sides stalled in 2008 when Newtown Colonial Hotel bypassed the discussions and applied for a liquor licence.
The owners have never commented on the venue’s past or future as a gay and lesbian venue.
Current plans seek permission to run the space as a bar and dining area from 10am-midnight, seven days a week.
The ground floor would be run as a bar and casual dining space, complete with beer garden and outdoor gaming area. The second storey would also contain a bar and balcony space for dining and smokers.
Former patrons contacted by Sydney Star Observer were excited to see the space re-open, but said it would be disappointing if the owners made no effort to acknowledge the local gay and lesbian community.
“If it opens, I think a lot of the old regulars will go there anyway, even if it is a totally straight venue,” one former regular, Mitch Bonett, said.
“Most of the bars in Newtown are mixed venues now anyway, so it doesn’t really matter.
“It would be a shame if it didn’t return as a gay and lesbian venue, but I’m sure a lot of the old regulars would just like to see it open again, because there’s nowhere to go.
“But I think [the owners] would be crazy not to acknowledge the gay and lesbian community, because there’s so many people who like going to a mixed place.”
The gay community is more than a “GAY BAR”…wake up and smell the coffee boys and girls. There is a HUGE WIDE WORLD outside the four walls of a PUB.
…just a thought :P
Drew :)
p.s. iIm sick of the same old story with gay bars….will they or wont they re-open …ZZZZZZZ
lol
If it is run by the same people who shut it down with 24 hours notice, the entire community should boycott it
Erin…You are dreaming if you think Clover will lose her position of Lord Mayor of Sydney over the tired ole Imperial…what planet are you on?
Council/Clover Moore lost a series of court challenges against the Imperial owner, but keep appealing…and losing.
No prizes for guessing who has the deeper (taxpayer funded) pockets!
The Newtown owners will face less hurdles opening up a Kebab shop.
To be honest i would like to see the hotel reopen as a gay or mixed venue.
yay this is cool i really hope it opens as a gay pub but if not i will still go
From my experience Council approvals appear ‘discretionary’ and somewhat inconsistent in approach depending on the size and generosity of the business interest behind the development application.
Can Clover Moore really claim to be a friend of the gay community with her Council putting Imperial Hotel owners and potentially others through endless hoops and red-tape? You’d think there would be some interest to help smooth the way for our community just a little. It’s disappointing. Let’s hope its remembered come next Mayoral election.
There are plenty of pubs in Newtown that are frequented by gays & lesbians. BAn, Union, Coopers etc etc. If (is it ever going to open) the Imperial opens then there is a the gay specific pub for the area. Apparently queues of people will be queued up outside and 800+ crammed inside it will be that good.
I would just love to see the Newtown to re-open as gay icon
Anything that would return the streetscape (while also modernizing) is welcome as far as Im concerned..
And Ben, the Imperial is a very different kettle altogether.. The Imperial owners are bullying the Council over the floor space/patron ratio (smoking area issue) that is being applied to all other applications around the city – they are using the community to just get special treatment. And further – hundreds of people queuing at the venue each night?? What pub in the WORLD has that?? Honestly.. Everyone needs to look through the tripe being served up by the hotel owner!
Maybe the owner’s new liquor licence won’t get approved with the current crackdown on alcohol- especially if they have nothing to offer apart from just yet another place for straight people to drink. Yet, if they were offering something different, say a GLBT skew, then maybe the licence might get approved. Just a thought.
Won’t be attending that venue if it’s not gay. Keep the $$$ in the community. YOu know that other cultural groups do that, so we should look after our own too.
Would be great to see this refurbished but I still miss those drunken and fun relaxed Sundays there. It was all gay and just fantastic !
These guys are brave. Look at Clover Moore’s antics delaying the opening of the Imperial with a series of (losing) court challenges.