Mercantile Hotel - Refurbishment & Rooftop Terrace

We have no opposition to the proposal, as long as there are safeguards in
place so that our ability to enjoy our property are not compromised.

The specific issues we are concerned about;

Hours of Operation
The rooftop open terrace should not operate after 10.00pm and the
doors accessing the terrace bar should be closed at this time. We also
think the number of patrons on the terrace should be restricted to 100
at any one time.

External Doors to the hotel to be closed from 10.00pm with maybe some
exception for big event days i.e. New Years Eve, Australia Day, St
Patrick's Day and Anzac Day.

Noise Issues
This is directly related to the hours of operation already commented
on above, as well as noise generated by live music and speakers which
should all be contained within the venue.
To further limit noise generated from the venue the main entry and
exit should be located at the far left hand side of the building when
viewed from George Street, this would be particularly significant on
the big event days.

Mechanical Exhaust Systems
One issue we are particularly sensitive too is cooking smells/odours.

If possible locate the mechanical exhaust systems to the far left hand
end of building when viewed from George Street, which would place the
exhaust as far away as possible from our building. Odours could be
further mitigated by incorporating the latest filtration treatment.

The nature and operation of the Mercantile Hotel can have a significant
negative affect on our rights to enjoy the amenity of our property. We
are vulnerable to noise the hotel generates in the street, through
amplified music and/or announcements and would be vulnerable to noise
from the proposed roof terrace and noise and odours related to the
mechanical exhaust system.
Given the large amount of money this proposed development will cost,
the owners will be keen to recoup their outlay. It is important that
any new facilities approved, and the hours and nature of operation
that might be allowed, do not come at the cost of local residents'
right to the quiet enjoyment of their own properties.
To protect our amenity, any approval of SSD 8665 should be subject to
the following conditions:
 The main exit and entry to the hotel should be at the
southern end of the building as far from our building as possible.
 The mechanical exhaust system needs to be located at the
southern end of the building as far from our building as possible. It
should incorporate electro static filtration and ozone odour
treatment.
 The roof terrace needs to have some form of screening to
limit noise at the northern end of the building and onto George St
 The roof terrace should not operate after 10 pm and roof
terrace doors should be closed at this time
 The number of patrons using the roof terrace should be
limited to a maximum of 100 at any one time
 External doors to the hotel should be closed from 10 pm
except on `Big Days' (see below) when they should be closed by 11 pm,
with an exception being made for New Year's Eve when they should be
closed by 12.30 am.
 There should be no music or use of amplification devices for
any purpose in outdoor areas used by hotel patrons
 Where speakers are used internally, there should be a larger
number of smaller speakers rather than a smaller number of larger
speakers
 Noise generated from speakers should be confined within the
building
 No external areas should be used for private functions
 `Big Day' celebrations - e.g. New Year's Eve, Australia Day,
St Patrick's Day, Anzac Day and perhaps one sport-related event -
should be limited to five days per year and
these should be identified and listed an annual calendar.

Given the huge investment this proposed development will cost, the owners
will be keen to get a return on their outlay quickly. It's therefore
extremely important any new facilities approved and the hours and
nature of operation that might be allowed, do not come at the cost of
local residents' right to their amenity. This is particularly
important given the location of the bedrooms on the west side of our
apartment straight across the road from the Merchantile Hotel.
The nature and operation of the Mercantile Hotel can potentially have
a significant negative impact on our rights to enjoy the amenity of
our property. We are very vulnerable to noise the hotel generates in
the street, through amplified music and / or announcements and would
be equally vulnerable to noise from the proposed roof terrace and
noise and odours related to the mechanical exhaust system.
To protect our amenity, any approval of SSD 8665 should be subject to
the following conditions:
* `Big Day' celebrations - e.g. New Year's Eve, Australia Day, St
Patrick's Day, Anzac Day and perhaps one sport-related event - should
be limited to five days per year and these should be identified and
listed an annual calendar.
* External doors to the hotel should be closed from 10 pm except on
`Big Days' (see below) when they should be closed from 11 pm, with an
exception being made for New Year's Eve when they should be closed
from 12.30 am.
* The number of patrons using the roof terrace should be limited to a
maximum of 100 at any one time
* Noise generated from speakers should be confined within the building
* No external areas should be used for private functions
* Where speakers are used internally, there should be a larger number
of smaller speakers rather than a smaller number of larger speakers
* The main exit and entry to the hotel should be at the southern end
of the building as far from our building as possible.
* The mechanical exhaust system needs to be located at the southern
end of the building as far from our building as possible. It should
incorporate electro static filtration and ozone odour treatment.
* The roof terrace should not operate after 10 pm and roof terrace
doors should be closed at this time
* There should be no music or use of amplification devices for any
purpose in outdoor areas used by hotel patrons
My wife and I live in the (only) residential apartment building that
runs from Hickson Road through to George Street almost immediately
opposite the Mercantile Hotel and two bedrooms are only across the
from the Merchantile Hotel.

Firstly I would like to state that we support the above proposal subject
to various conditions.
This development will affect our bedrooms at the rear of our
apartment. We would like to have an assurance that there is no
additional noise likely to impinge on the enjoyment of our apartment.
ie - amplified music or announcements, noisy mechanical exhaust
systems, additional odour or even loud crowd noise. Noise generated by
amplification should be contained within the building.

If possible we would ask if the main entrance be located as far from
our building as it can be and the same for the exhaust system which
should incorporate electro static filtration and ozone odour
treatment. The new roof terrace should have its hours limited to 10 pm
after which the doors/shutters should be closed and the number of
patrons always limited to 100. The external doors of the hotel should
be closed at 10 pm except on specifically recognised events including
Australia Day, Anzac Day, St Patricks Day, Christmas Day etc when the
closing time should be 11 pm. On New Years Eve naturally it would be
12.30am as the rest of the district.

Finally we would ask if the development could incorporate an excellent
restaurant and have great ambiance for everyone's enjoyment.

I live in an apartment in Hickson Road, The Rocks. The apartment I live
in runs from Hickson Road to George Street. The layout of the
apartment is such that the 2nd and 3rd bedrooms have windows facing
onto George Street. These are the only windows for these two bedrooms.
Our apartment is essentially at the level of George Street footpath
and diagonally opposite the northern end of the hotel. The existing
operations of the Mercantile Hotel impact on the use of these bedrooms
late at night and in the early hours of the morning. The impact is
from the noise of patrons and in particular amplified music that is
emitted from either the footpath area or from within the hotel when
the northern doors are left open of an evening. In recent years, one
of these bedrooms was occupied my father who was in his 90s at the
time and quite ill. It is currently occupied by my three-month old
grandson. It is not unreasonable to expect that anyone using these
bedrooms should not be negatively impacted by noise from the hotel
operations. There is potential for additional noise impact from the
roof bar and terrace particularly between 10:00 pm and midnight when
the open terrace is proposed to be in use. Considering the major
refurbishment that is proposed, it is appropriate at this time to
address the source of existing noise impact as well as those that will
be a consequence of the proposed roof top bar and open terrace. I am
concerned about two aspects of the existing and proposed operation of
the hotel: 1. Noise emitted by patrons and amplified music late at
night and in the early hours of the morning particularly from the open
terrace and George St footpath. 2. Noise, smell and fumes that may be
emitted from kitchen mechanical exhaust systems. Noise emitted by
patrons and amplified music I note the recommendations contained
within the noise assessment report prepared by SLR, dated 7 February
2018 and submitted with the application. I agree with the conclusion
that amplified music of any type played on the open terrace at anytime
is likely to impact on the nearby residential properties including our
home at 8 Hickson Road. I also agree with the proposed prohibition of
any amplified music on the open terrace. The noise assessment report
does not assess and has not mentioned the impact of noise from
amplified music played on the George St footpath. This has a very
similar impact on 8 Hickson Road. Should the applicant have any doubt
in respect to this impact, I invite them to carry out a noise
assessment within the George St bedrooms of 8 Hickson Road during
times when there is amplified music played on George Street.
A similar prohibition on amplified music should be applied to George
Street footpath as is applied to the open roof terrace. The SLR noise
assessment recommends that the use of the open roof terrace be
prohibited after midnight and the doors between the bar area and the
open terrace be kept closed after midnight. Similarly, the doors on
the northern end of the hotel leading from the public bar to George St
should also be kept closed. The acoustic quality of these doors, and
the street elevation generally, should also be improved so as to
contain the noise of patrons and amplified music to within the hotel
itself. The application proposes that the open roof terrace not be
used after midnight. The use of this area and the George St footpath
should be required to cease at 10:00pm. It is unreasonable to expect
that people using our George St bedrooms can't sleep until after
midnight because of noise emitted from the external areas of the
hotel. This is particularly the case considering that these bedrooms
are used by young children and elderly people. Similarly, the doors
connecting the roof bar and the terrace and the public bar and the
footpath should also be closed after 10:00pm. Noise, smell and fumes
that may be emitted from the kitchen mechanical exhaust systems.
The application proposes a new commercial kitchen including a new
mechanical exhaust system.
Recent experience of the changing of cooking methods at restaurants
has highlighted the significant impact that noise, smell, fumes and
smoke emissions can have on surrounding residential properties and the
neighbourhood generally, if mechanical exhaust systems are not
adequately designed, constructed and maintained.
The circumstances relating to the Ribs and Burgers restaurant at 88
George St should be noted. This property changed from a French
restaurant to its current use and the kitchen exhaust system was
totally inadequate to cope with the changed method of cooking. The
result was two years of smoke and cooking odour impacting extensive
areas of Hickson Road and George St to the extent that part of the
Hickson Road footpath necessitated barricading off from pedestrians so
as to prevent them being affected by smoke and fat dropping onto the
footpath.
The impact on the local area required enforcement action by the Sydney
City Council over many months, the imposition of a number of fines for
noncompliance at a cost of thousands of dollars. The amenity impact
has been reduced, but not eliminated, by the retrofitting of a new
mechanical exhaust system. I suggest that Department staff should
consult with the appropriate offices of The City of Sydney who have
extensive experience in the enforcement of conditions of development
consent relating to mechanical exhaust systems in determining
appropriate conditions that should be attached to any development
consent.
The application proposes a new commercial kitchen and mechanical
exhaust system. The new system should be designed, constructed and
maintained to the highest possible standard so as to enable it to
adequately filter and deodorise kitchen exhaust from proposed and
future cooking methods.
In this respect the proposed kitchen exhaust system should be located
as far to the southern end of the building as possible, should be
fitted with electrostatic filtration and ozone odour treatment to
remove smell, grease, smoke and fumes from kitchen exhaust.
Big Days
The Mercantile is an active participant in `Big Days' at The Rocks
such as New Year's Eve, St Patrick's Day and Anzac Day. On the
occasions of the recent St Patrick's Day and the Australia Ireland
Rugby Test the activities of the Mercantile were extended onto the
road area of George St that is covered by The Rocks Markets canopy.
This activity included a stage with amplified music and patrons'
drinking area located approximately six metres from our George St
bedrooms. The use of the street by the Mercantile continued until
about 10:00pm.
On these nights the noise levels within the George St bedrooms is so
loud that the rooms are virtually uninhabitable. It should be noted
that neither Property New South Wales nor the management of the
Mercantile have consulted with the residents of 8 Hickson Road in
respect to these extended activities nor obtained development consent
for the use of George St for an extension of the hotel's commercial
activities.
It is accepted that `Big Days' are an integral part of the character
and public use of The Rocks. However, it should be recognised by
Property New South Wales and the management of the Mercantile that
these uses of George St have a significant impact on the amenity of
the residents of 8 Hickson Rd.
`Big Days' where the hotel utilises George St for amplified music and
extended areas for patrons should be limited to no more than 6 per
year. With the exception of New Year's Eve activities in George St
should cease at 10:00pm. An annual calendar should be produced, in
consultation with the residents of 8 Hickson Rd, giving advance
notification of the 6 days when George St will be utilised for the
activities of the Mercantile.
Cumulative Noise Impact
In assessing the impact of noise from the Mercantile on residents of 8
Hickson Rd no consideration has been given to the cumulative effect of
other noise in the neighbourhood.
In particular no consideration has been given to the noise associated
with the setup of The Rocks Market in the very early hours of Saturday
morning. On Saturdays the Markets setup commences before 5:00am.
Should the external areas of the Mercantile be allowed to operate and
generate noise up to midnight there is inadequate quite time available
for healthy sleep for those people occupying the George St bedrooms of
8 Hickson Rd. In respect to the specifics of our apartment at 3/8
Hickson Rd these people include elderly people and children.
Conclusion
The proposed refurbishment of the Mercantile Hotel including the
provision of a roof terrace and bar is generally supported. The
proposal will improve the hotel and provide an upgraded facility for
patrons and visitors to The Rocks generally.
However, it must be acknowledged that the existing and proposed
activities of the hotel impact on the residents of 8 Hickson Rd.
The refurbishment and extension should only be approved if conditions
are attached to any consent that may issue that minimise the existing
and future impact of hotel activities on the residents of 8 Hickson
Rd.
It is requested that the following conditions be attached to any
consent that may be issued:
1. That there be no amplified music in external areas of the hotel,
including the proposed open roof top terrace and the George St
footpath with the exception of `Big Days'.
2. That the use of external areas including the roof terrace and
George St footpath cease at 10:00pm.
3. That the doors between the open roof terrace and the enclosed roof
bar be kept closed after 10:00pm.
4. That the ground floor doors at the northern end of the hotel
between the public bar and the George St footpath be kept closed after
10:00pm.
5. That the ground floor elevation of the hotel, facing George St.,
including the doors to the footpath be acoustically treated so as to
contain noise to within the hotel building.
6. In all areas of the hotel where speakers are used for the
transmission of music, or other purposes, that a larger number of
smaller speakers be utilised rather than a fewer number of large
speakers. Speakers should be located so that they project noise into
the building and away from the George St elevations.
7. That the use of George St road area for hotel activities be
restricted to "Big Days' and to no more than 6 per year.
8. The 6 days that are nominated as `Big Days' to be determined in
consultation with the residents of 8 Hickson Rd and to be included in
an annual calendar.
9. That with the exception of New Year's Eve, hotel activities on
George St on `Big Days' cease at 10:00pm.
10. The mechanical exhaust for the kitchen be located at the southern
end of the building.
11. The mechanical exhaust for the kitchen be fitted with
electrostatic filtration integrated into the cook top extraction hoods
and ozone odour treatment to ensure that there is no impact on the
residents of 8 Hickson Rd of smoke, smell, fumes or grease from the
kitchen exhaust system.

I am in favour of refurbishing the Hotel in general I am deeply concerned
about this proposal in specific as it relates to :

- operating hours
- amplified music - especially for the outdoor venues and
- noise and odour relating to the mechanical exhaust system

Please consider these issues when reviewing this proposal as it
directly affects our peaceful enjoyment of our unit as well as it's
potential market value.

Although I realise that the Hotel is due for a refurbishment, I am deeply
concerned regarding this proposal as it pertains to extended opening
hours, amplified music and increase noise and odour from the expanded
mechanical exhaust system. I am in full support of other submissions
and would appreciate if the amenity of residents were taken into
consideration when reviewing this Development Application.

For over a year, I have been complaining to the management of the
Mercantile hotel regarding late night noise emanating from live music
being played at the hotel until shortly before midnight, so loud and
penetrating in our bedroom as to keep us awake until about midnight or
wake us from sleep. That late night noise takes over the neighbourhood
acoustically and often gets louder after 10pm as the band acquires
more energy. This is particularly annoying on a Sunday night or
holiday night, when the next day is a working day for me and my wife.

The hotel is creating an `offensive noise' under the Protection of the
Environment Operations Act 1997.

Despite my repeated requests, the hotel continues to have late night
live music and create this offensive noise, especially in the warmer
months, when the hotel fails to comply with the liquor licence
condition that the doors facing George Street be kept closed during
live entrainment.

The ongoing failure of the hotel to comply with this condition shows
that neighbourhood residential amenity will continue to suffer if
'soft conditions' are imposed, such as keeping the George Street doors
closed during live entertainment.

For that reason I submit that a condition be imposed that live
entertainment and amplified music cease at 10pm. Anything less than
that will see the neighbourhood residential amenity continue to suffer
unnecessarily.

I object to the opening and closing hours. Not only are the alterations to the Hotel extending the venues but also the hours.We will not be able to open our windows with the noise. Our back rooms backing onto the Hotel are bedrooms with children sleeping in them, on some days will be lucky to get four hours sleep. Is it really necessary to open 19 hours per day. Even if we install triple glazing (at enormous cost to us) we will not alleviate the problem as we will not be able to have the windows open at any time to get fresh air. The market setting up wakes us at between 4-5 on a saturday which should be set up the night before and now we are contemplating various areas in the Hotel opening 7 days per week between 5 am until 1 am. Its unacceptable.

I am an owner/resident of unit no 2/8 Hickson Road and my bedrooms are located on George St directly in front of the entrance to the Mercantile Hotel . Although I am in favour of this application in General, I have the following concerns:
- Operating Hours and Patron Capacity : I would not be in favour of this application if it included any increase to operating hours or patron capacity. Though the owners representative has assured us that they are not requesting any increase in either, I did notice that the application included a listing of all the proposed operating hours as if this was a change request. There should be no increase approved.
- Noise Disturbance: We are very sensitive to any amplified music or people gathering noise and would like to see additional sound insulation to all ares of the Hotel both internally and externally. The owners representative has indicated that the applicant is also are in favour of additional sound insulation but may be restricted by heritage regulations. I would greatly appreciate if the application of Heritage rules be flexible and take into account the amenity of residential neighbours.
- Security: The section of George Street between Hickson and Lower Fort St is very dark at night and poses a security and safety issue. I would propose for the Council to require additional lighting as a part of this application - possibly an extension of the fairy lights on the trees currently on the southern part of George Street.