"That we have an identifiable sound, the ‘Dunedin Sound’, puts us in a small group of cities internationally like Manchester, Detroit and Nashville.
This is a result of Dunedin’s unique physical and cultural environments and the amazing talent of our musicians."
So says dunedinnz.com, our city’s visitor website. On its homepage, beautiful soft-focus film highlights scenery, wildlife, food, street art, surf ... and a gig at the stadium. You can tell it’s a gig because people are holding up their phones — they don’t do that at the rugby.
Last year, a noise complaint about local music venue Dog with Two Tails saw five police cars arriving to a folk gig. An unusually heavy-handed response for sure, but the tension is far from new. For all its status as a music city, Otepoti Dunedin lacks effective protection and support for live music — especially the amplified music which put us in that small group internationally.
Music cities recognise what characterises their music, how important it is for their identity, wellbeing and economy, and act. Manchester and Nashville (and Melbourne, and London) set high sound protection standards for developers, which protect inner-city residents, grow housing and ensure a vibrant nightlife. Queenstown has done the same.
Dunedin’s new district plan (2GP) still sets low sound protection standards, even in our city centre. Full protection for venues is absent, apart from the stadium and inner Octagon. Complaints from just one person can quickly tip a venue over the edge of viability, taking an entire music scene with it.
Operating any kind of music venue is hard, marginal work: ask any venue manager, musician, tech person, hospitality worker, security guard or gig promoter. Communities of musicians and audiences grow and develop around venues over decades and generations, more so in a music city like Dunedin. They can take just as long to recover from a venue closing or being severely restricted.
All this led to the formation of our group, Save Dunedin Live Music.
For the past 18 months, we’ve worked with Dunedin City Council on these issues. They agreed to fund and help develop a live music action plan, and together, we commissioned a report from Aotearoa New Zealand’s leading independent planning experts, illustrating these concerns.
Then in May, the DCC granted resource consent for new residential apartments in Rattray St, right next door to The Crown Hotel. The consent was "non-notified", because 2GP allows it. The story broke in the ODT three weeks ago.
Unsurprisingly, this has set our music community in a state of alarm about the future of The Crown.
Built in 1862, The Crown has hosted live rock music since 1989. Crucially, its manager is a prominent music community member, supporter and an incredible fan of Dunedin music, who keeps The Crown affordable and accessible for bands and audiences.
Because of this, some bands play their first gig there, while others play on national tours, or as part of their international music careers.
Last year, the NZ Music Commission funded a major upgrade of The Crown’s sound, lights and stage, recognising its role in supporting and developing local talent.
On its Broadway side, a large, beautiful piece of street art recognises the Chin family contribution to our cultural history, which includes music venues like Sammy’s Nightclub and the Tai Pei.
Unless the developer next door goes well above and beyond 2GP’s low standards, their tenants will have limited protection, apart from the right to complain. Their proposed development will likely force The Crown to close, or severely restrict music.
Until the DCC fixes the 2GP standards, this problem can happen again, and again, until we have no music venues left.
Dunedin music has amazing talent, enthusiastic audiences, a supportive community, an international profile and a desire to recover and grow after some really difficult years. We still have much to build on.
To do this, our city needs to take its own claims about the status of our music seriously. It’s part of our cultural heritage, and The Crown is our opportunity.
Every band that plays the stadium started somewhere. If they’re a rock band, it was probably at a venue very much like The Crown.
There are Dunedin developers who do excellent work to protect and develop our heritage buildings, with strategic funding and support from the DCC. Our music needs their support too.
Without it, The Crown will close, and our museum exhibitions, street art and visitor websites will remember, rather than celebrate it.
Just this month, The Crown featured in a Tourism New Zealand campaign to attract Australian music fans here. As their campaign puts it: "seeing casual gigs in local pubs remains the lifeblood of any scene".
■ Fairleigh Evelyn Gilmour and Craig Monk are members of Save Dunedin Live Music.
