Those rusted onto the
bar at Baron's would have been tipping their glasses to Clover Moore until
dawn.The late-night Kings Cross watering hole has been preparing to call
last drinks for months after the building owner, Ron White, last year lodged
a development application to bulldoze it and build a four-storey block in
its place.
But the Roslyn Street bar, one of the last bulwarks against the
inner-city tide of chrome stools and mood music, is expected to win a
reprieve following a move by the Lord Mayor and her team of independent
councillors to quash Mr White's plans.
Their motion to refuse his application, to be debated next Monday night,
notes that the building housing Baron's Restaurant "contribute[s] to the
character and identity of the Elizabeth Bay Conservation Area", as well as
its "social heritage".
The replacement building would "not be compatible with the existing
streetscape".
Opened in 1979, the bar has provided a dilapidated refuge of second-hand
furniture and backgammon tables to a legion of late-night drinkers.
The licensee, Michael Cherote, said that although the original 1882
building had undergone several changes, "it still has great heritage value
and really is a historical part of the area now. The council unanimously
recognises its value".
By contrast, the development application lodged by Mr White, who is the
co-owner of the Woollahra Hotel and the Bellevue at Paddington, proposes a
larger building with a restaurant on the ground floor and three levels of
commercial office space above.
Mr White could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Residents have been strongly opposed to his plans. The City of Sydney
received 51 submissions criticising it, and none in support. It also
received a petition with 1118 signatures opposing the application.
