Sydney’s CBD might be turned into a 24-hour nighttime precinct

Following public feedback from February and March this year, the City of Sydney is proposing to turn the Sydney central business district into a 24-hour nighttime precinct.

The City aims to double its nighttime turnover to $30 billion and increase night-time employment by 25% to 100,000 jobs.

By 2030, it also hopes the nighttime economy to be transformed from a focus on younger people and drinking to 40% of people being over 40.

Its plan is for 40% of operating businesses at night to be retail outlets.

The Sydney Morning Herald this morning reported that among the changes that the City are shops and businesses being allowed to trade around-the-clock, small bars to stay open longer in inner city areas such as Glebe and Surry Hills, and late-night trading precincts will emerge in fast-growing residential areas like Green Square.

Lord mayor Clover Moore told the SMH that these proposed changes were in response to “overwhelming” public feedback in favour of “a diverse and exciting night-time economy”.

“What [people] do not want is a city that is unsafe or that shuts down as soon as the sun goes down,” she said.

At this point, despite the council’s opposition to the lockout laws, the proposals do not factor in licensed venues.

However, bookstores, clothing shops, banks, drycleaners and hairdressers could trade around the clock.

The City earlier reported that the main themes that emerged from its public consultation on its late-night trading development control plan included strong support for:

• Trading hours for late-night premises across the city to increase, particularly in Green Square, Broadway and parts of Surry Hills.
• Maintaining or increasing the size of late-night trading areas across the city, while ensuring popular precincts like Newtown remain safe and sustainable.
• More diverse late-night businesses including shops, restaurants, cafes, small bars, live music and performance spaces and cultural venues across the city.
• Strong support for increased late-night activity in fast-growing parts of the city like Green Square.