PlanningAlerts

6 Comments

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1. I am a resident of Bligh Place, which is directly opposite this venue. The music is already very loud and I object to live music at this venue. I also object to any change from bar to nightclub, particularly as that could mean an extension of their liquor licence hours and patron numbers (either by this owner or a future licence owner). I have made complaints regarding noise from this building to the police and Melbourne City Council in the past regarding this venue.
   The venue has noisy patrons outside in summer months and the owners/managers have a poor record in controlling public noise and street disturbances. The residential nature of Bligh Place, stretching back to the 1990s, should be respected.

2. I am a resident of Flinders Lane and I object to the introduction of Live Music and continuation of the late night licence for this venue, without an acoustic audit and acoustic upgrade of this premises. This venue operates without any acoustic barrier or closed doors to the street and has several single glazed windows facing directly onto Mill Place. The noise bleed from this venue, especially the windows, is already considerable with the sound reverberating up the narrow laneways to the residents above. Three of the buildings on the Corner of Flinders Lane and Mill Place/Bligh Place are predominately or partially residential and the noise from both the music and patrons can be very loud on the weekends. There is limited or no crowd control by managment of guests leavng and no control over the noise made by patrons smoking in the laneways before returning to the club.

3. I reside in Flinders Lane and fully object to this application. The area has a high number of residents, including children living in the immediate vicinity. The building in question, particularly the basement, is not fit for purpose for a venue as being applied for. The building is old and the is zero acoustic absorption/protection for any of the surrounding buildings/residents. Most recently there have been two bars operating out of the basement of 313 Flinders Lane, being the Randy Dragon and currently, the Miranda Bar. Both show zero consideration for any of the residents in the area and the noise generated from both patrons inside the basement, together with the overflow of patrons into Mill Place where noise reverberates through and off the surrounding concrete building walls, which is considerable. The bar allows patrons to exit the building and drink/smoke in Mill Place which further impacts both the noise as well as mess left each Friday/Saturday/Sunday morning.
   The owners of the basement would need to take on considerable upgrades to the fit out of the basement before it would be appropriate to continue as a venue playing music. The windows are all single glazed, there is zero sound protection/isolation, there have been a number of incidents where the Fire Brigade have been called due to smoking patrons inside the bar setting off the building fire alarm which is a waste of time and money to such a critical community service provider.
   Further, there have been number noise complaints to the Police due to illegal consumption of alcohol in Mill Place, together with complaints to Melbourne City Council however no one seems to be doing anything about it. If a nightclub was to be granted permission in the basement of 313 Flinders Lane, these types of issues would only escalate and who is responsible? I can imagine it would have to be Melbourne City Council, based on the ability to either approve or deny such applications, together with the ownership of laneway management, which is becoming an increasing issue in the central business area as more and more people choose to reside in the city.
   If Melbourne City Council wishes to continue to collect premium rates from residents, a serious evaluation of noise and laneway management needs to occur.

4. My family has an apartment in Bligh Place opposite the proposed venue alteration. We believe that we are good urban citizens alongside with our fellow residents in the surrounding buildings. We form a growing community of people who have chosen to reside in the city and I believe our combined presence contributes to making Melbourne the special city it is. Our 'footprints' on our surroundings are generally quite small, many of us don't have cars and make use of the wonderful transport system that Melbourne has.
   We understand the need and enjoy that we share the space with other people who are involved with the city in other uses, workers, cafe owners etc. Together we form a community which respects and supports each others needs. No one group dominates the urban space and for that reason the combination of residential and commercial works really well.
   The venue in question is already overly dominant in the area - they and their patrons do not respect the ecosystem that has been generated by our combined presences. If anything, I would request their current operation and impact on the area is investigated. To further increase their foot print on the area ( and I agree with all other comments already made by fellow residents) would mean they had a larger impact on the area than the current residents and commercial premises.
   As residents it is recognised that we contribute to the area via our taxes and levies and in return I believe the council needs to recognise our rights going forward. This particular part of the city has a high proportion of dwellings and as such is not suitable for a live venue. Our council should not have a 'free for all' policy which allows bars and nightclubs to develop without restriction. Melbourne CBD is a very special place, let's not destroy the balance that has been achieved.

5. Although I do not reside on Flinders Lane, I reside loverloooking Flinders Court.
   We have enough Bars and Nightclubs in the area. We are impacted by the 24 hr fast food outlets and strip clubs with the type of people they attract late at night early morning. The homeless congregate nearby to harass patrons and eat the food leftovers. I believe that the City of Melbourne should seriously look at how many viable Bars/Clubs they can allow if you want residents in the city centre make the place liveable.

6. We also overlook adjacent Finders Court, which has become a dismal all-night den of drunkenness, human waste, noise, trash and thieves. Club patrons and homeless continually lurk and harass residents and pedestrians alike as an easily observed active drug trade lures uncontrollably shaking teens to addiction, as previously documented to the City. If the argument is that yet another all-night club will help the economy, it is self-evidently false. Yet another loud and lascivious establishment will rather dissuade investment, job creation, and legitimate residential and commercial development in one of the most visited and photographed areas in all of Melbourne and Australia. Rather than yet another nefarious night crawl, this area should attract a complete clean-up that will bring in hundreds of millions of dollars of renewal and a renaissance that will make Melbourne proud, as residents commenting here and surrounding high-rise developments confirm.

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