Port Phillip is the latest Melbourne Council to implement parking permits for musicians to alleviate the stress and financial burden many gigging acts endure on a weekly basis.
Port Phillip - which is home to prominent live music venues Memo Music Hall, The Prince, The Fyrefly, Dogs Bar and The Vineyard - will set up a system in which musicians can park in loading bays during certain hours to load in and out, which will help avoid fines.
Music promoter Nick Haines and council member Andrew Bond had been pushing for the permits for five years, with Port Phillip unanimously voting them in yesterday.
“I live in St Kilda and every time you walk past a live music venue, you see musicians lugging gear up and down the hills and streets and right outside the pub, there’ll be an empty loading bay that they’re not able to use,” Bond told The Music.
“You’ll see musicians pull up illegally out the front and unload their gear and take the chance of getting a fine, so rather than have them parking illegally, we’ve come up with a category that allows them to park up front.
“It was a bit of a no-brainer.”
St Kilda Live Music Community president Suzi Dhol told The Music they would be providing each venue in the area with permits for bands to put on the dashboard.
“The council will be changing the loading zone signs in St Kilda to say ‘Loading Zone and Musicians’, which is very sweet,” Dhol said.
“The fact it was unanimous is a big plus, because to have everyone across the board support live music is a really big positive for us.”
The move follows on from City of Yarra pioneering the Music Victoria parking initiative back in 2010, with City of Moreland signing on in 2011 and City of Melbourne trialling it in 2012.
