Dubbo's Old Bank Music Shop submit development application for small bar and live music venue

Mick and Gloria Picton - who also used to own the Old Bank Bar and Restaurant before selling it off to the MAAS Group - are proposing to transform a retail premises on Macquarie Street into a small bar which acts as an "intimate performance space" for musos.

"It'll be somewhere where there's no poker machines, just a quiet room for musicians to be able to play a ticketed event," he said.

"Sometimes the schools are looking for somewhere for their kids to perform , the theatre might be way too big for something like that, maybe they'll only be expecting 40 or 60 or 80 people.

"They just need an area that's outside of home where they can put on a show."

The site - next door to the Old Bank Music Shop on 80 Macquarie Street, Dubbo - is currently home to jewellery store Nangar Gems. Mr Picton, who owns the building, said Nangar Gems were keen to move out and find smaller premises.

"Their lease was coming to an end and we asked them if they wanted to stay on and they said they're looking for another shop and this space was a bit too big for them," he said.

The Old Bank Music Shop already hosts live musicians on a stage in the back of their store, nicknamed 'The Crossroads Stage'.

Having the stage permanently set up in a dedicated space next door would make hosting performances less labour-intensive for the staff.

"Pre-COVID we had quite a few shows here in the shop, but during COVID we stopped doing them. The artists wanted a place where they could play to some people and sell a few tickets," he said.

"What I have to do now is, in the music shop, I've got to clear out all the racks to make space. I wheel them around the back of the stage and jam them all behind there - it takes about two or three hours to do."

"The new venue would complement what we do now. I just love music so much and love seeing people perform. Having the shows in the shop has been awesome and that's what I'm all about."

The development application would see the storefront rezoned as a 'small bar' to make it possible for drinks to be served before and after the shows.

The internal fitout would also be modified to install a stage, bar area and practice rooms out the back.

Mr Picton said, if approved, the venue would provide a useful space for both up-and-coming artists to cut their teeth and for established artists to play more intimate performances.

"It's about giving locals a stage to perform on that gets them going so they get the courage to maybe play somewhere bigger, it can be a stepping stone for them," he said.

"And sometimes bigger acts just want a quiet environment where they can play these up-close-and-personal shows. And that's what I want to create."

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