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Oxford Street's gay bars are losing out to Internet cafes and
garishly illuminated 24-hour convenience stores. Gay-friendly Newtown,
Erskineville and Camperdown are drawing the crowds which once strutted up and down Oxford Street. Even drag queens are finding a shortage of venues on the "Golden Mile". "It's changing a lot," says Anthony "Chelsea Bun" Defina, who manages bookings for a dozen drag queens, including Tess Tickle and Claire De Lune. "There are less venues ... but personally I think the Albury needed a bit of renovating." Even South Sydney Council has taken notice. It is embarking on a "development control plan" to look at land use issues and their social impact along the street. But it's too late for some. The Albury is moving upstairs and losing its street-level bar -- the home of drag shows in Sydney -- to retailing. Across the road, the Beauchamp Hotel, once a teeming venue, is empty, awaiting conversion to an Irish pub. The Oxford Hotel's main bar has forgone biceps for 24-hour pokies while around the corner, off Oxford Street, The Flinders and The Beresford are more grey than gay. "I don't think a lot of people feel safe going out on Oxford Street any more," says Dawn O'Donnell, the owner of gay pubs the Newtown Hotel and Erskineville's Imperial Hotel. "This week I read about two men being beaten up on Oxford Street ... It's disgusting." Ms O'Donnell still has a significant stake in Oxford Street, operating the two Toolshed adult stores. She agrees the strip has changed dramatically in recent years. "I first got involved in Newtown 20 years ago and people told me I was mad," Ms O'Donnell says. "Back then the hottest scene was Oxford Street and everyone wanted to be there. I think it became too successful for its own good. It got too big and that brought trouble. Today the hot places are Newtown or Caesers Bar in Camperdown. "But there is also a big change within the new generation of gays. They tend to mix with a whole range of people. They have as many straight friends as gay, which I think is great. They all go out together. It's very mixed these days, much more than before." At Stonewall, one of the few remaining gay venues on Oxford Street, promotions manager Ricca Paris agrees the crowds have become "more mixed". "During the week it's very gay here, but on the weekend you see a whole different crowd coming. I've put on extra security on Fridays and Saturdays because you can get a bit of trouble at the door. Generally, though, it is much more mixed. Gay and straight, they all mix well and usually it's fine.' Clive Faro, author of Street Seen, A History of Oxford Street, says the changes have been dramatic. "Oxford Street is a victim of its own success. Its popularity drew a lot of people to the street who have no sympathy or understanding of gay people," says Mr Faro. Those people can be very hostile towards gays and lesbians. "I think a lot of the blame rests on the shoulders of South Sydney Council because the maintenance of the street has not been kept up. It's dirty." However, South Sydney Council, which stopped early-morning cleaning on Oxford Street after nightclub patrons complained they were getting wet, says it's doing the best it can. "I think the volume of people who use the street every day takes its toll," says the council's statutory planning manager, Mr Giovanni Cirillo. "The council is not happy with the homogenisation of Oxford Street. We want to see a deeper mix of businesses on the street." |