A restaurant that sparked a war between NIMBY neighbors over its opening hours has won a major court victory and been given permission to trade late into the night.
The Joey in Palm Beach, which became famous as the original filming location for Home and Away, angered residents when it proposed extending its closing hours from 4:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays during business hours. in summer, until 11:00 pm every day.
The Northern Beaches Council rejected the application, but the venue appealed to the Land and Environment Court, which this week approved the 11pm closing time.
Conditions attached to the approval include that the venue holds no more than two functions per week, with a limit of 140 people.
It comes after the dispute over Joey’s trading hours rocked Sydney’s exclusive northern beaches suburb for months.
Seven locals, including millionaire Stephen Jones, argued that noise from customers at the restaurant half a mile away, across a nine-hole golf course, would ruin their peace and quiet.
Financial adviser Mr Jones led the revolt against the request, saying it was “totally unreasonable” and would cause serious anxiety to his family.
“I object … due to a significant increase in the duration of loud music and particularly the deep bass effects that reverberate through the room and can be heard from inside our home,” Jones said in a presentation to council.
Joey’s nearest neighbors are half a mile away, across a nine-hole golf course.
The venue appealed to the Territory and Environment Court, which this week approved the closure at 11:00 p.m.
‘This loud music and deep bass rhythm significantly affects our comfort and well-being. You can hear music and noise from customers inside my room.
“It is totally unreasonable that nearby residents should have to suffer noise problems because this place operates seven days a week.”
Jones said that at a wedding held on March 9 at The Joey until 10 p.m., he heard an “extremely high noise level,” including chatter from customers.
“This caused my family great anxiety,” he said.
“I contacted the operator on numerous occasions asking them to turn down the music volume, lower the bass beat, and change the music style to NO bass beat.”
But the operator “made no attempt to turn down the music or bass volume all night and was, in fact, quite rude in his response.”
Jones claimed that the wedding guests were still outside the venue long after the wedding ended, fighting and fighting.
Although 132 other locals submitted letters of support, complaints from Mr Jones and the other six objectors were enough for the Northern Beaches Council to reject the offer.
Co-owners Ben May and Rob Domjen (left and center) spent $7 million renovating the venue ahead of its reopening this year.
Stephen Jones was one of seven people who complained about Palm Beach Joey’s extending its opening hours.
Excited supporters criticized the decision, calling detractors “crazy” and saying dining options were few and far between in the upmarket suburb.
NSW Premier Chris Minns also weighed in on the debate, saying the council’s decision represented the “opposite direction” of the government’s vision for Sydney’s hospitality scene.
The Joey was formerly known as the Boathouse Palm Beach.
Co-owners Ben May and Rob Domjen spent $7 million renovating it before it reopened this year.
The court’s pardon can help them recover approximately $150,000 they have paid in legal and consulting fees.
Meanwhile, Jones took action and left Palm Beach before the court issued its decision.
In November, he and his wife Susan reportedly sold their property for $9.5 million.