As apartment living becomes more common in Canberra, the ACT Government has released a suite of reforms designed to protect Canberra’s night life and live music scene.
Being close to live music venues and night life hotspots is part of the appeal of apartment occupiers in the inner city and in town centres.
As more and more people choose to live in these areas, it’s important that the Government provides a framework that balances the rights of occupiers and the desire for the city to have a vibrant nightlife.
These reforms include:
- Extended daytime noise limits.
- Tasking the National Capital Design Review Panel to consider acoustic amenity when it reviews mixed-use developments.
- Better information for residents, including renters, and businesses.
- Noise limit information on ACT Government maps.
The Government has listened to the concerns raised by advocates of Canberra’s live music scene, and we believe that these reforms will help live music and entertainment thrive in our city, town and group centres, boosting our night time economy and supporting jobs in the Territory.
Extending noise limits on Friday and Saturday nights from 10pm to midnight in the city and town centres and 11pm in group centres such as Dickson, Erindale and Kingston will allow venues to make amplified noise longer into the evenings on weekends.
Better access to information will help businesses understand their obligations, while information for residents will outline sound rules in different parts of the city, particularly if they are considering moving into mixed-use areas.
The Government is continuing to work to identify suitable locations for special entertainment precincts in our ACT Planning review.
This package of reforms adds to previous changes incorporating noise management provisions in Crown leases and development approval conditions.
We thank the music and arts community for their feedback so far and will continue to engage with them about issues such as live performances and events as part of our ACT Planning review consultations.
