When a popular and historic Adelaide pub was facing the threat of demolition earlier this year, locals got together, petitioning the government in the hopes of saving the iconic venue.
By April, the petition had reached the Green’s Heritage and Planning MLC Robert Simms, who recognised that the current heritage laws had difficulty in accounting for the cultural and social value of sites such as the Crown and Anchor, also known as The Cranker.
In a win for Adelaide’s east end arts community, this week the South Australian government announced The Cranker, along with other venues in Adelaide, would receive protection under new state laws.
SA Premier Peter Malinauskas announced the news at a rally protesting the development application for the 170-year-old building, advising the crowd of the planned changes to protect live music venues.
The planned legislation will give The Cranker the right to remain a live music venue “forever”.
The state government reached a deal with the owners of the hotel, Wee Hur, where the development will be moved to a neighbouring site and allowed a further ten storeys.
The company will also be granted an expedited development process.
Peter Scott, general manager of Wee Hur was pleased that the result benefitted all involved, and that it allowed Wee Hur to provide further investment in student housing.
While The Cranker may be forced to close for two years as building works are completed next door, the assured ongoing protection of live music is considered a huge win.
In the new legislation, pubs will be allowed to continue to play live music when a neighbouring building and land is purchased for development.
“Developers are going to really think again before they target Adelaide’s iconic buildings in the future,” Simms said.
Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young is also passionate about supporting live music and local creatives.
“Community has lifted its voice. They’ve cranked it up for the Cranker and today we’re starting to see the pressure working,” she commented.
While this win reveals how the laws have been stacked in the favour of developers, Simms will be keeping a close eye on developments to ensure required levels of protection will be provided in the new legislation.
