Currently, businesses that want to extend their trading hours beyond what is allowed in the conditions of their liquor licenses and development consents must seek planning approval.

In a SEP, Council sets the maximum permitted trading hours and sound from venues with live music in a precinct management plan, making it easier and reducing costs for licensed and unlicensed business, such as bookshops and cafés, to trade late without the need for new development approvals. SEPs encourage businesses to provide live music and performance, make it easier and reduce costs for licensed and unlicensed business, such as bookshops and café, to trade late without the need for new development approvals, and allow Council to set sound criteria to suit the context of the area and encourage live music and performance.

We will work with the community, local businesses and police to determine what maximum trading hours will support vibrancy whilst balancing local amenity.

To encourage live music and performances, the Liquor Act 2007 will allow eligible licensed venues in SEPs an additional hour of trading every night of the week, if they host at least 45 minutes of live performance after 8pm on at least 2 nights of any 7-day period.

Dedicated live music and performance venues will be allowed an additional 2 hours of trading on any night that they host a live performance after 8pm for more than 45 minutes.

The grant will allow us to undertake an acoustic study and develop new, tailored controls to manage entertainment sound in the Manly commercial centre.

The approach to developing sound controls for the SEP will be informed by acoustic testing throughout the precinct, existing sound limits and feedback from businesses and the community, with guidance from the NSW Government’s SEP Acoustic Toolkit.

Entertainment sound in a SEP includes:

• sound emissions from live or recorded music, entertainment and/or performance (both indoor and outdoor)
• sound associated with patrons arriving & leaving venues
• the sale and supply of liquor, provision of food/dining services
• staff or patrons conversing and singing
• set up, pack downs, rehearsals and sound checks.

It does not include any sound associated with other activities such as equipment, servicing, construction, waste disposal and collection, or mechanical ventilation.

We are required to identify the boundary of a SEP in the Manly Local Environmental Plan (LEP) 2013 and prepare a Precinct Management Plan which will set out the new trading hours and sound controls.

Councils must outline compliance procedures in a Precinct Management Plan. This means that there will be clear guidance on what to do and who to contact in the event that a venue is exceeding the SEP’s sound thresholds and trading hours.

We will undertake an operational trial of the maximum trading hours and sound controls outlined in the Precinct Management Plan over 18 months. After 12 months of the trial, we will go back to the community to evaluate the impacts of the trial and seek a Council resolution on whether the SEP should be implemented permanently or revoked.

We received State funding of $173,760 through a SEP Kickstart Grant which is available for activities related to establishing a SEP, including a consultant-prepared acoustic study and community engagement requirements.

The SEP Kickstart Grant also provides an opportunity for us to implement actions tested and supported in the Manly Place Plan including:

• a 6-month trial of late-night trading hours for low impact uses
• a 6-month trial of late-night trading hours for higher impact uses
• acoustic testing to inform noise planning controls.