ALBURY Council will impose an 11pm closing time on the replacement youth cafe in QEII square to avoid complaints about noise.
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The Retro Youth Cafe has been forced to relocate from its former home in Burrows House, which has been incorporated into the $10.5 million art gallery redevelopment.
A development application for the $824,000 cafe at the rear of the LibraryMuseum has been submitted with council and will be assessed independently.
Proposed operating hours are included in the application with the cafe planning to hold three Friday night music events a month with the majority to be held inside.
Some will be held in the cafe’s outdoor courtyard with louder live events in the nearby Albury Entertainment Centre.
The council has guaranteed “all reasonable measures” will be taken to ensure noise levels don’t impact on neighbouring premises.
The new cafe will have 343 square metres of floor space and include workshop areas, cafe, office and meeting room, toilets, storage and a deck overlooking QEII Square.
No additional carparking will be created for the replacement cafe, but changes to the loading zone in the laneway between the LibraryMuseum and Belbridge Hague solicitors to create spaces for staff parking.
The changes will need to be approved by the council’s local traffic committee.
The Retro Cafe previously operated satisfactorily with no on-site parking for customers.
It operated in Burrows House from 2003 to April last year.
Once the development application has been assessed and approved tenders will be called to construct the cafe with work anticipated to start before the end of the year.
Mayor Kevin Mack said lodging the development application was an important step towards creating the new cafe.
“We’ve ensured that the community, especially our young people, have had input into all aspects of the new design,” he said.
Retro Youth management committee spokesperson Sophie Cochrane also welcomed the move.
“We need a safe place to meet, enjoy each other’s company, get involved in youth activities and to just hang out,” she said.