An iconic Melbourne live-music venue has been ordered to keep the noise down by non-existent neighbours in an apartment block which hasn’t been built.
Fitzroy bar The Night Cat, which has operated without issue since 1994, has been hit by a bizarre legal order that has been compared to a dystopian Tom Cruise sci-fi movie.
The bar faced closure until furious locals rallied around owner Justin Stanford to help fund urgent soundproofing upgrades after the developer took him to court.
C&R Building Pty Ltd has successfully obtained a court order forcing the popular Johnson Street bar to dial down the volume before the new neighbours even move in.
The upgrades are needed to satisfy noise permit requirements for the venue which launched the careers of The Cat Empire, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard and Amyl and the Sniffers.
The Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal made the interim order last month despite the developer’s planned 57-apartment Johnson Street complex not even close to being built.
Yarra Council, which has sided with The Night Cat in its legal battle, previously denied the developer a building permit which ignited the sound war.
Mr Stanford said his bar was targeted by the developer after the council ordered the planned complex must be installed with costly sound mitigation measures.
‘The developer is in a stoush with the council who denied their building permit because they didn’t want to spend money on sound mitigation so they came after us instead,’ Mr Stanford told the Daily Mail .
‘We’ve copped it but you know developers, once they’ve got their building permit they’re gone, you never hear from them again.’
Mr Stanford launched a GoFundMe on Tuesday which has so far raised almost $15,000.
He said the funds will go towards soundproofing, installing advanced sound monitoring equipment and expert acousticians to ‘prove we are compliant with planning laws’.
‘For decades, this venue has been a home for live music, a place where artists and audiences come together to celebrate the vibrant culture of Fitzroy,’ Mr Stanford posted on his GoFundMe page.
‘As a direct result of increasing compliance demands from developments in the area, the venue is now under immediate threat of closure unless costly soundproofing upgrades are implemented.
‘As an independently owned venue, we simply can’t shoulder these costs alone and continue to operate.
‘Whilst development in the City Of Yarra continues to grow, we face new challenges in keeping live music alive the way we love it.
‘To secure The Night Cat’s future and ensure it remains a cornerstone of Melbourne’s music scene, we need to act now.’
Mr Sandford estimated the ‘crucial upgrades come at a significant cost’.
‘But they will safeguard The Night Cat not just for today, but for years to come,’ he posted.
‘By making these improvements now, we can continue to support artists, protect local jobs, and ensure that music lovers have a place to experience live performances in the heart of Fitzroy.
‘We’re turning to our community, our friends, our patrons, and the artists who call this place home, to help us reach our goal. Every contribution, big or small, will make a difference.
‘Let’s stand together to protect live music and keep The Night Cat thriving.’
Mr Stanford said he will call on local artists, many of which got their start at the venue, to put on benefit concerts at The Night Cat.
‘We’re confident we’ll get the support to keep the doors open forever,’ he said.
Yarra Council, spearheaded by recently elected mayor Stephen Jolly, are backing The Night Cat.
Mr Jolly told the Daily Mail the noise complaint reminded him of the movie Minority Report where futuristic cops arrest people before they commit a crime.
‘This is like that Tom Cruise movie – the police arrest you five years before you commit a crime,’ Mr Jolly said.
‘The Night Cat is getting punished for a crime they haven’t even committed.
‘These developers haven’t even dug a hole, laid a brick, they haven’t even got a permit and they’re telling a live-music venue which has been opened for decades in the Fitzroy party-zone to keep the music off, it’s a disgrace.
‘We have to protect these venues, we have to protect this district and its culture, it’s the last bastion of live-music in the city and the developers want to destroy it.
‘We must put a stop to developers getting everything they want, by all means you can be allowed to live in peace and quiet but if you want quiet, go build in Camberwell, not Fitzroy.’
Mr Jolly also feared if these developers got their wish then other developers will do the same thing.
‘The snake will eat itself, if all the culture and fun of living in a fun inner-city party area is destroyed by concrete jungles then why would anyone want to live there?’ he said.
According to legal documents obtained by the Daily Mail , the council said: ‘There is no issue with the noise levels.’
The tribunal also accepted the council ‘…has not received a large number of complaints with respect to noise emanating from (The Night Cat)’.
The council also insisted The Night Cat ‘…should be consulted regarding whether the assumed source levels represent their operations’.
‘The proposed development may represent an encroachment which restricts (The Night Cat’s) operations,’ the council told the tribunal.
The developer presented an ‘independent acoustic report’ to the tribunal which ‘conclusively demonstrates that The Night Cat is currently operating in gross breach of the conditions of permit’.
The tribunal heard sound measures were only taken on two nights.
The developer also claimed it sought assurances from The Night Cat it would comply with the noise level restrictions but were allegedly stonewalled by the venue.
The developers also claimed it ‘repeatedly requested council to enforce the permit conditions or explain why it chooses not to require compliance’
Tribunal deputy-president Teresa Bisucci said she understood repeatedly meant ‘three occasions in March 2025’.
‘It is up to (The Night Cat) to use whatever measures are appropriate to ensure compliance with the relevant permit conditions,’ Ms Bisucci said.
‘Such measures could be as severe as ceasing operations, or perhaps additional acoustic works or exercising greater control over the volume of entertainment noise.
‘For present purposes, compliance with the relevant permit condition is sufficient. How that can be achieved longer term may ultimately be the subject of discussion at any final enforcement proceeding.’
The noise permit issue and the permit to build the 57-apartment Johnson Street complex will also be determined by the tribunal at a later dates.