Hopetoun Hotel Update
News posted Tuesday, September 29 2009 at 01:00 PM.
Sydney’s Hopetoun Hotel will be closed for a minimum of three months, a spokesperson for the Surry Hills venue confirmed today (September 29).
Speaking to M+N following yesterday’s abrupt closure, the spokesperson said that extensive works were required to meet council standards, but that the venue is expected to open again thereafter.
“The works required are to make the pub compliant with fire ordinance and other conditions connected with the operation of the pub as a venue,” she said. “We have had notice for several months, however the work is extensive and cannot be done while the pub is trading.”
In the meantime, all foreseeable events including shows by touring internationals Tiny Vipers and Vivian Girls have been cancelled.
The spokesperson thanked members of the local music community – some of whom started a Facebook group, a Twitter page and a blog – for their support. “We wish to thank the patrons and supporters of the Hopetoun and apologise for any inconvenience caused by this temporary closure,” she said. “We will develop a strategy for dealing with the issues over the coming weeks and will take you up on your offer to help when the time is right.”
The spokesperson was speaking on behalf of Evangelos Patakas, the director of a company which has owned the Hopetoun Hotel since the late 1990s.
UPDATE (September 29, 3.25pm) Council security regulations have also been blamed for the Hopetoun’s temporary closure. Echoing the woes of a number of small venue operators in Melbourne, The Hopetoun has had to ensure that two security guards are present at all shows at considerable cost to the venue. “In a period of about a seven days we were fined a total of about $3000 for not having them on certain nights,” Hopetoun director Anastasia Patakas told M+N.Source: http://www.messandnoise.com/news/3761449
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