Traffic management (42 per cent) made up the bulk of the cost of a street festival followed by staffing including police, security, first aid and cleaning (27 per cent), consultants (20 per cent) and infrastructure such as barriers, toilet hire, electricity and traffic signage (4 per cent).
“All of this is predicated on the idea that the main street is dangerous,” Byrne added. “You go to a place like Barcelona where they deliberately design the whole city so that it’s easy for people to come out and use public space.”
The Minns government says it also wants to slash red tape, which it concedes makes the cost of staging free festivals, concerts and markets too expensive for many local councils and event organisers.
It will provide up to $500,000 under its Permit/Plug/Play Pilot program to councils, including the Inner West and Northern Beaches, to make it cheaper and easier to stage events.
“The costs are a big barrier,” Arts Minister John Graham said. “We are working to fix that so that we can have more of these events that bring our communities together and bring vibrancy to our main streets.”
Graham said hosting street events would boost business for local shops, cafes, pubs and restaurants.
“They also send the signal that the whole community is welcome,” he said.
Arts Minister John Graham said the cost of shutting down a main road for an event is a “big barrier”.Credit: Inner West Council
The Leichhardt Collective president Nigel Ng backs more street festivals to boost local businesses and “make use of the roads we all pay for as taxpayers”.
However, Ng said events such as the Norton Street Italian Festa, which is organised by The Leichhardt Collective, may inconvenience some residents because of road closures and are susceptible to bad weather.
“Our plans going forward are to create a continual schedule of smaller events that celebrate local businesses and provide tangible experiences for local residents,” he said. “Events like pizza making classes, cocktail masterclasses [and] music nights.”
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Northern Beaches Council will apply for a grant to implement a standard traffic management plan and install signage and removable bollards to reduce the cost of providing infrastructure for street-based events.
Northern Beaches Mayor Sue Heins said the program will make it easier to stage events.
“By reducing the costs associated with hosting street events and streamlining approval processes, we can encourage more local activities that bring people together, foster a sense of community and stimulate our local economy,” she said.