More than 70 per cent of\u00a0community\u00a0submissions received as part of\u00a0a recent public exhibition\u00a0have\u00a0indicated strong support for a\u00a0controlled trial to\u00a0extend trading hours for\u00a0select\u00a0restaurants and small bars\u00a0in Newcastle.
\nCouncil voted unanimously last month to support a trial to extend the trading hours of restaurants in the city until midnight\u00a0and to 2am for small bars, as first proposed in the City of Newcastle\u2019s\u00a0After Dark Strategy, also unanimously adopted in 2018.
\nAt tonight\u2019s Council meeting, Councillors voted to endorse the extension of the trial from\u00a0six\u00a0months to 12 months.
\nThe community was\u00a0given\u00a0the opportunity\u00a0during September\u00a0to comment on the Department of Planning, Industry\u00a0and Environment\u2019s proposed amendment to the Newcastle Local\u00a0Environment\u00a0Plan\u00a0to facilitate the easing of restrictions.\u00a0\u00a0A total of 142 submissions were received, with\u00a072%in support of the trial.
\nTwenty-four\u00a0small bars and restaurants have opted into the trial as part of efforts to grow the night-time economy and support the hospitality industry\u2019s recovery from the impact of COVID-19 related restrictions.
\nNewcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said community feedback is an important component of the\u00a0Night Time\u00a0Economy\u00a0trial\u00a0and that the\u00a0weight of the positive submissions reflects majority community support for the trial.
\n\u201cThis\u00a0strong feedback demonstrates there\u00a0is an\u00a0appetite\u00a0for more diverse offerings in Newcastle\u00a0when the sun goes down.\u00a0Our\u00a0City\u2019s\u00a0night\u00a0time\u00a0economy has enormous\u00a0potential to grow.
\n\u201cOur community\u00a0values\u00a0the benefits\u00a0of thriving nightlife,\u00a0and that is a more\u00a0vibrant\u00a0city\u00a0with\u00a0increased\u00a0access to businesses,\u00a0jobs,\u00a0services and entertainment.
\n\u201cResearch has also shown that encouraging a range of experiences\u00a0with a wider cohort of visitors, makes for a safer city at night.
\n\u201cThe intention of this\u00a0trial\u00a0is\u00a0to\u00a0revitalise the City\u2019s economy and support\u00a0a\u00a0local\u00a0industry that employs 13,280 people and generates more than $1.5 billion\u00a0each year\u00a0in economic activity.
\n\u201cCity of Newcastle\u2019s After Dark Strategy guides the development of a safe, diverse and vibrant night-time economy\u00a0and\u00a0the\u00a0trial\u00a0is one of its recommendations.\u201d
\nExamples of low impact venues identified in the Newcastle After Dark \u2013\u00a0Night Time\u00a0Economy Strategy include small bars, restaurants, cinemas, theatres, galleries, microbreweries and comedy clubs.
\nA summary statement\u00a0prepared by CN\u00a0addressing the key issues raised in the\u00a0Department of Environment, Planning and Infrastructure exhibition period was received by Council tonight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
More than 70 per cent of\u00a0community\u00a0submissions received as part of\u00a0a recent public exhibition\u00a0have\u00a0indicated strong support for a\u00a0controlled trial to\u00a0extend trading hours for\u00a0select\u00a0restaurants and small bars\u00a0in Newcastle. Council voted unanimously last month to support a trial to extend the trading hours of restaurants in the city until midnight\u00a0and to 2am for small bars, as first proposed … Continue reading “Community signals strong support for Night-time Economy Trial”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8322\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}