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A northern suburb in Sydney will become the city’s newest nightlife precinct, adding to a list of nighttime drawcards shifting west of the CBD as people increasingly seek destinations closer to home.
The City of Ryde will create a designated “special entertainment precinct” in Eastwood where restaurants, bars and other venues can trade for up to two hours longer on nights when live music is offered, and one hour longer on other nights. The relaxed planning rules also prevent unreasonable single noise complaints from shutting down venues and offer an 80 per cent reduction in liquor licence fees.
The policy is part of the NSW government’s broader vibrancy reforms aimed at relaxing rules and stimulating the sluggish 24-hour economy after years of lockout laws, pandemic lockdowns and cost-of-living pressures.
Music and Night-time Economy Minister John Graham said the centralised approach of “pouring everyone into Kings Cross” didn’t work.
“Eastwood is a great example of the new approach which is about building unique precincts right across NSW. It is already becoming one of the best places to go out in Sydney, now it will get even better,” he said.
Eastwood’s commercial centre was pedestrianised in the 1990s – it has since transformed into a bustling hub well known in northern Sydney for its restaurants, grocers and cafes. The suburb’s culinary footprint is famously split by the railway line – east of the railway station is the officially designed “Koreatown”, while the “Chinese side” lies to the west.
Another drawcard is Eastwood Night Markets, which opened in 2012 and grew in popularity after COVID-19.
“We have gone from strength to strength,” said organiser Kelly Wen. “This precinct trial would make it even easier for us to run the markets and give locals and visitors even more to enjoy at night.”
By night, Eastwood is served by the 500N and the N80 buses. There are no plans to increase nighttime train services on the T9 Northern line, which run every 15 minutes at present, a spokesperson from Graham’s office said. They confirmed that the government would assess opportunities to expand public transport, and keep an eye on patronage numbers over the 12- to 18-month precinct trial to determine demand.
There are nine special entertainment precincts statewide, and 24 councils – including Burwood, North Sydney and Parramatta – have either already established or expressed interest in bringing them to their local areas.
Ryde council is the latest and received $250,000 in government funding for strategic planning, acoustic framework development and community consultation.
City of Ryde Mayor Trenton Brown said Eastwood already hosted the Granny Smith and Lunar New Year festivals, and was home to a 24/7 library.
Ryde councillor Justin Li, who runs community page Humans of Eastwood, said the precinct was a “natural fit” for the suburb.
“For many years, people have been coming to Eastwood to have dinner anyway; they tend to stay around,” he said. “It fits well with Eastwood’s broader character.”
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