With the recent news of Sydney’s iconic Annadale Hotel going into receivership following financial strunggles, a petition to save live music at the Annadale has received successful results and has just about reached its target of 2,500 signatures.
As reported last week, the Annandale was forced into receivership following crippling financial debt, and new receivers Ferrier Hodgson has expressed their support to keep the venue up and running as a live music venue. As former owners Matt and Dan rule stipulated, “We are working with them to ensure that live music does stay at this iconic Sydney venue.”
While musicians and politicians are rallying behind the hotel, local council mayor for Leichhardt Darcy Byrne quickly jumped at the opportunity to help the struggling venue and publicly drew attention to the live music plight claiming that “I for one will be doing everything I can to make sure that the Annandale remains a live music venue, including working urgently with the receivers.”
The mayor of Leichhardt Council, Darcy Byrne’s petition to all Councils in NSW calls for the adoption of a “good neighbour” policy. The petition focuses on three main points; preventing the unnecessary prosecution of live music venues, organising meetings between licensees and residents to resolve noise complaints, and protecting music venues against unreasonable residential noise complaints. The petition has already attracted 1988 signatures in three days at the time of publication, nearing its target of 2,500 signees.
As recently reported, the Leichhardt Mayor Darcy Byrne has looked to introduce a new “good neighbour” policy which will aim to provide support to venues to prevent residential complaints landing the venues in court which in the past contributed to Annadale’s bankruptcy. Byrne however does have hope for the live music scene in Sydney saying that “it is time to draw a line in the sand a put an end to local government’s attacks on the music industry.”
Bryne was recently interviewed by Polaroids of Androids spoke of his plans for transforming the Leichhardt area from an “eyesore” to a thriving music scene.
“I am fighting to protect the Annandale Hotel, including advocating within Council to improve the viability of the pub as a live music venue.” – Greens MP Jamie ParkerByrne hopes to “resolve noise issues before they occur, rather than doing what’s happened in the past, which is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of rate-payers money and costing the venue a similar amount in order to achieve exactly the same result.”
“I’m confident that when we bring forward comprehensive policy proposals that can improve our local community by making it a live music hub and better support iconic venues like The Annandale that we can win the support of other councillors,” he says.
“I think there’s a growing recognition in the community that something does have to be done to revive the live music scene here in Sydney and, to be fair, I think in recent years because of state government legislation changes we have seen some positive improvements,” he added. “It’s a controversial issue and will require some courage and bravery from everybody on the council.”
The Greens petition calls for the venue to be kept as a hub for live music rather than it being sold off to developers or turned into a pokies venue.
