Melbourne council to help soundproof venues

In a first for an Australian council, the City of Yarra in Melbourne introduced funding to help soundproof venues.

It has a pool of $25,000 from which any of its 50 live music venues can get $2000, or $5000 if the venue matches it dollar for dollar.

The City covers inner city musical hubs as Brunswick Collingwood, Richmond, Fitzroy and Northcote, so it’s not surprising noise complaints are a problem. The grant covers installations, noise measurement devices and fees for consultants and building surveyors.

In a statement published by The Herald Sun Music Victoria spokesman Patrick Donovan suggested venues apply for acoustic reports through City of Yarra funding.

“They could then take that independent consultant’s report to the government and use that as part of a submission saying here is what we need,” Donovan said.

The grants need to increase as venues spend up to $50,000 to keep complaints at bay. Councillor Simon Huggins plans to push for more funding in the future.

Applications for council grants are open at the Yarra Council website.