Sydney council offers $30,000 grants to build laneway culture

Sydney council will give cash grants of up to $30,000 to small bars, retail and hospitality businesses to encourage them to open in the CBD’s laneways.

Sydney council will give cash grants of up to $30,000 to small bars, retail and hospitality businesses to encourage them to open in the CBD’s laneways.

The Laneways Business Development Program, unveiled at a City of Sydney Council meeting this week, recommends offering the grants to encourage the transformation of the laneways.

The one-off grants will be available to businesses with unique ideas for small CBD spaces that are otherwise empty.

Businesses will need to match the grant dollar-for-dollar and meet the selection criteria. The money can be used for capital works and new equipment to set up new business.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the grants were about more than just small bars. “Our initiatives encourage everything from small-scale specialist retail and fashion, to entertainment and creative uses that will add a new dimension to the types of businesses in the city centre,” she said.

Inside Retailing