22 Pubs in the Inner West Are Now Heritage Listed

22 pubs in the Inner West Council area have been added to the State Heritage Inventory, in an effort by the council to ensure their safety from development.

Of those newly listed, twelve are from Rozelle, Balmain and Balmain East on the Balmain Peninsula. These include the Native Rose Hotel on Victoria Road, the Cricketers Arms Hotel and the nearby Unity Hall Hotel, the Cat & Fiddle, Dick’s Hotel, East Village Hotel, Garry Owen Hotel, Sackville Hotel, the Balmain Hotel, the Welcome Hotel and Town Hall Hotel.

In Newtown, the Carlisle Castle Hotel, Websters Bar and the old Sandringham Hotel which houses the minigolf venue and cocktail bar Holey Moley was listed. The Duke of Enmore, a popular live music venue on Enmore Road, and Enmore’s Warren View Hotel were also listed. From Marrickville, the Royal Exchange Hotel and Vic on the Park made the list.

The Annandale Hotel and Petersham’s Livingstone Hotel were also listed. The new additions to the register now join the 26 already-listed venues from the council area.

Pubs “an extension of the lounge room”

Mayor Darcy Byrne took aim at developers who he said have “targeted” historic pubs for conversion into housing or commercial space, whilst declaring the council’s commitment to “preserving and nurturing” Inner West pubs.

“These heritage listings will help to send a message that if you buy a long-standing pub in the Inner West, you should be prepared to operate it as a pub,” Byrne remarked.

“In our community, pubs have been a social hub for local residents for well over a century. Traditionally, many people have seen the bar at the local pub as an extension of their lounge room.”

“Our Inner West pub culture has been the breeding ground for some of Australia’s best and most famous musicians and performers, and we want to make sure this continues into the future.”

There was outcry when Balmain’s Town Hall Hotel was shut in 2017 with plans for its conversion at the time into a medical centre. The historic pub, dating to 1879, was ultimately converted into a gym which has since closed. The Town Hall Hotel is among those newly listed.

Among the pubs which were already listed are the London Hotel in Balmain, Norton’s Irish Pub in Leichhardt, and numerous others over a wider array of suburbs than the new additions.

UPDATE: A spokesperson from the Heritage office of Minister Penny Sharpe contacted City Hub to clarify that “the pubs are all locally listed and can be found on the State Heritage Inventory, not on the State Heritage Register”.