It seems curious that the former entertainment Mecca of Sydney - Kings Cross - has strict closing hours and limits on alcohol consumption while our sister city to the south - Melbourne - is entirely free of similar restrictions.
Is it because Melbournians are better behaved ? Those Sydney restrictions were hastily imposed back in 2014 after a spate of senseless street bashings resulting in deaths and the spectacle of huge crowds surging from one alcohol serving venue to another in search of the nightly " action " !
Supporters of the curfew point to a dramatic drop in street crime immediately these time limits were imposed. There was an immediate 45.3% drop in domestic assaults in Kings Cross and a 20.3% drop in common assault across the entire city CBD.
The restrictions were draconian. 1-30 became the lockout witching hour. Those inside a venue could stay but no new entrants could enter and when someone leaves their only option was to go home. Last drinks call was at 3.00 am - and there were restrictions on the types of alcohol allowed to be served.
The entertainment industry protested that this was not the sort of regimen expected in a world city - and Sydney is certainly in that class. It was particularly galling when International visitors openly compared the drinking and entertainment laws between Sydney and Melbourne. Sydney was operating well below the accepted world standard.
High Court judge Ian Callinan has just completed a review of these lockout laws and has suggested changes. He suggests the 1-30 am lockout be extended to come into force at 2 am and the last drinks call moved from 3 am to 3-30 am, but only for establishments that are providing live music entertainment.
At present, bottle shops are forced to close at 10 PM. Callinan suggests that 11 am closing may be more appropriate, and that home delivery of alcohol be allowed until midnight. The state government will consider this review and probably make a decision by early in the new year.
Some critics of the Sydney restrictions hold the view that Melbourne is a less congested city and that its watering holes are widely spaced.. From its earliest days Kings Cross was the bohemian red light district and in the R and R days of the Vietnam war the cluster of entertainment venues expanded exponentially. By 2014 it was completely out of control and drawing crowds on a city wide basis.
Perhaps imposing these draconian laws just on Kings Cross is a little tongue in cheek. Many venues closed their doors as the crowds dwindled and new venues appeared in the suburbs where the laws do not apply. By watering down the laws it may be possible to create a new Kings Cross which will not morph into the prime city attraction because it will have to compete with the new crop of widely spread venues serving the Sydney night life traffic.
Unfortunately, the old Kings Cross had become a monster that was completely out of control. It had become a lethal place to visit because of drunken patrons and the government had little options other than to slay the dragon. Now might be an appropriate time to breather new life into the corpse, provided the revival can be controlled.
Perhaps if that revival goes to plan Sydney may be able to quietly dump those lockout laws some time into the future !
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