Local Council's Vision For New Live Music Hub Could Soon Be A Reality

Imagine a booming entertainment precinct where live music venues, bars and restaurants can thrive alongside traditional industries — this is the vision a local Sydney council has for a new creative hub. 

Marrickville Council have identified the potential of a Sydenham Station Creative Hub as a place that can nurture the city's live music and give the scene a boost in a big way. 

To bring about the hub, the land selected in Sydenham needs to be rezoned from General Industrial to Light Industrial, which would then allow a range of creative industries to operate within, while existing industry would not be impeded. 

Speaking to theMusic, Live Music Office Policy Director John Wardle said the vision for Marrickville should be supported, given that the area is a hot spot for live music, with venues that include The Factory, Red Rattler, Gasoline Pony and Marrickville Bowling Club, among many more. 

"Setting the ground rules and planning for arts and cultural land use in this district which already has great live music rooms, light industrial building stock, right on a major transport interchange and where residential development will not be permitted as such, really demonstrates that this is a council that not only supports the existing venues, but has the vision to recognise the potential to grow a creative precinct," Wardle said. 

"If anyone had a dream to set up a live music venue, small bar, or creative business right on a major transport interchange between the city and significant suburban renewal along adjacent railway corridors, I'd be looking very, very closely at the Sydenham Station Creative Hub."

Marrickville Council is currently asking for feedback on the hub from business and land owners, residents, musicians and the wider community. 

"In recent years there has already been an influx of boutique food producers and creative industries. Plus, the residential population nearby is growing," Mayor of Marrickville Councillor Sam Iskandar said.

"This all means that weekend and night-time activity is increasing, highlighting the need for better pedestrian access to Sydenham Station.

"With the fantastic transport links the area has, we believe a Sydenham Station Creative Hub could easily become a must-visit destination for all of Sydney."

A report outlining the results of community consultation will be considered by council this June. 

Click here for more details. 

The news comes on the back of reports yesterday from NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), which found that the number of assaults at Sydney's The Star Casino have increased since the introduction of the lockout laws in 2014. 

The results showed that 49% of non-domestic assaults in Pyrmont occurred in The Star precinct, while 71% of those incidents found that the victim was a patron at the casino.