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AAP
AAP
Politics
Neve Brissenden and Jack Gramenz

'Very vocal' neighbours silenced to save music venues

People buying homes in an entertainment zone will have to sign an 'eyes wide open' clause. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS)

Homebuyers moving into popular nightlife zones will be warned of the likely noise issues as NSW looks to grow its list of entertainment precincts.

The special districts, which feature extended trading hours for certain venues and looser noise controls, are set to be expanded after the second tranche of the state's "vibrancy reforms" were introduced to parliament on Tuesday.

Buyers will be required to formally acknowledge they are buying property in an entertainment zone when snapping up real estate within the precincts under the planned changes.

Just one precinct has been established to date, on Enmore Rd in Sydney's inner west, but Arts Minister John Graham wants more in a bid to revive the state's ailing nightlife industry.

"It will become more of a discussion about exactly where these areas are and are not," he said.

"So the community knows which bits of the suburbs should be lively, but also which bits we want to be quieter and more suburban neighbourhoods."

Jimmy Barnes performs on stage at the Enmore Theatre
Sydney's popular Enmore Theatre will be included in a special entertainment precinct. (Adrian Bauman/AAP PHOTOS)

It is also hoped the laws will put an end to conflict between established venues and new neighbours.

An "eyes wide open" clause on planning certificates will inform prospective property buyers they are purchasing in an entertainment area, although noise complaints will still be considered.

Previous reforms relaxed rules on outdoor dining, extended trading hours and reduced licensing fees for venues with live music and stopped a single noise complaint from shutting a place down.

State-owned land, including Walsh Bay on the northwest fringe of the Sydney city centre, and White Bay Power Station in the inner west, have been flagged as future entertainment hotspots.

Biennale of Sydney 2024 exhibition at the White Bay Power Station
Sydney's White Bay Power Station has been earmarked as a future entertainment hotspot. (Belad Al-Karkhey/AAP PHOTOS)

Premier Chris Minns said the legal shift was about pushing back against a steady tide of venue closures because "a few very vocal, very loud local neighbours demanded that they be shut".

It will be up to councils to nominate further entertainment precincts when applications open before the end of 2024.

James Thorpe, who operates a series of Sydney venues under the Odd Culture Group banner, said he was no stranger to noise complaints.

"We're getting up to three complaints per week from the same neighbour," he said.

Pleasure Club, one of Odd Culture's venues, was the first venue to get a 4am licence in inner-city Newtown in 100 years.

Odd Culture CEO James Thorpe
Odd Culture CEO James Thorpe is happy with how officials have handled complaints since the changes. (HANDOUT/SUPPLIED BY JAMES THORPE)

"The construction certificate required intense acoustic works, it's a sound lock," Mr Thorpe said.

"The fact is, these people, the neighbours of that venue, they won't speak to us any more - they just don't want a venue there."

Mr Thorpe said he was pleased with how officials had been handling the complaints since the first reforms in July.

Other proposed changes include removing restrictions that prevent entertainment in some venues or dictate what it should include, as well as allowing people to drink outside licensed venues while standing.

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