Recession ‘will spark small bars boom’

The recession and the high vacancy rate in Darlinghurst mean the gay precinct is likely to see a boom in small bars opening.

The cheaper rental prices in a recession mean it’s the right time to open a small bar in inner-city Sydney, former Melbourne architect Craig Allchin told a crowd of more than 200 hopeful entrepreneurs at a City of Sydney seminar.
Only after the 1990s recession did Melbourne’s inner-city come alive, Allchin said, mostly because of the small bars that filled up unused and unusual spaces offered at reduced rent. Only later did cafes and retail share the boom.
The other factor was availability of space, he said. Sydney’s CBD has little, which means Darlinghurst as a recognised entertainment precinct with late-night zoning is likely to be the location of choice for many licence applicants.
City of Sydney’s planning manager for the Darlinghurst area, Andrew Rees, said five applications are already earmarked for the Oxford and Crown Sts vicinity.
Venues in the green zone [along Oxford St] start with trading hours till midnight and can only apply to increase their trading hours once a year, and only two hours later at a time, he said. Ultimately, 24-hour trading is still permissible.
But the back streets, where most of the applications have been to date, are more restrictive. Venues start with trading hours till 10pm and cannot be extended later than midnight.
A second small bars seminar in July has sold out. The City of Sydney also had speakers from the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing, and two small bar owners talking about their tips for success.
Cr John McInerney said there was a lot of interest from would-be operators.
The City is keen to support this trend, which meshes well with our over-arching plans to revitalise the city and its surrounding villages with a rich mix of uses, he said.
It’s important that, while we promote a small bar culture, we also limit alcohol-related violence and other undesirable aspects of the late-night economy. Small-bar operators need to be aware of potential problems, and of their compliance obligations.

info: A podcast of the seminar is at cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/podcasts. Book for the final seminar on 5 November via [email protected].