Iconic venue Sammy's remains closed five years after being bought by council
A once popular entertainment venue has sat idle for five years since the Dunedin City Council bought it due to fears it would be torn down.
The council bought the Sammy’s building on Crawford St for $128,000 in January 2017, but it did not own the land.
The building opened as the Majesty Theatre in 1897 and its stage was once graced by Sir Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh.
In more recent years, under the ownership of Sam Chin, it became known as a music venue, hosting acts including The Pogues, Violent Femmes, Hunters & Collectors, and Pavement.
The venue's management ran into difficulties in 2016 when a liquor licence was declined, and it was put on the market – initially for $240,000.
The council confirmed its ownership of the site in February 2017, with then councillor (and now mayor) Aaron Hawkins saying: “Sammy's has played a huge role in Dunedin's social and cultural history, so it's exciting for our community to be able to start thinking about its future.”
The building had been at risk of being torn down, and it was envisaged at the time of the purchase that it would become an anchor tenant for the city’s Warehouse Precinct.
It was one of four venues initially mooted as a possible future performing arts centre along with the Athenaeum, the former Fortune Theatre and the Mayfair Theatre.
A feasibility study noted Sammy's was one of the larger spaces, potentially seating up to 400 people, but had the highest estimated cost – up to $38 million.
That was more than twice the estimated amount of the preferred option of the Octagon-based Athenaeum, which was not owned by the council.
A council spokesman said no decisions had been made regarding the future of Sammy’s, or the Fortune Theatre, which closed in 2018 and was also owned by the council.
“While these two venues have been ruled out as proposed new theatre sites, the council will not be considering any recommendations on their future until the council has decided on the new performing arts centre.”
That wasn’t good enough for music venue advocate Scott Muir, manager of The Chills and on the board of Independent Music New Zealand, who was “very disappointed”.
“The rhetoric around the reasons for purchasing Sammy’s centred around saving the music venue and now it simply seems to be a case of demolition by neglect – something DCC councillors have been happy to level at private business developers when it suits them.”
The same could easily be said of the neglect of the old Fortune Theatre building, he said.
The city was well catered with multipurpose theatre spaces, but was lacking a music venue with capacity for 500 to 800 people.
‘’The opportunity to leverage off the cities rich musical heritage and youth population bubble could easily be incorporated into a development in this space,’’ Muir said.
A reminder this hunting season
As thousands of hunters are making their plans for autumn – the Roar – recreational firearms groups are urging hunters to always be 100% sure of their targets.
Te Tari Pureke - Firearms Safety Authority NZ, which chairs the Recreational Firearms Users Group, has begun a public information campaign reminding hunters everywhere of Rule #4 of the Firearms Safety Code: to identify their target beyond all doubt.
Director Communities and Corporate, Mike McIlraith, says there is an estimated 50,000-60,000 New Zealanders involved in big game animal hunting each year, and the Roar is the key event for many hunters each year.
“The Roar is a fantastic time of year for hunters to get out into the hills after a trophy animal but hunting safely and making sure everyone gets home in one piece, still must be the most important goal of every trip,” says Mike McIlraith.
“The consequences of not fully identifying your target beyond all doubt can be catastrophic. Our message to hunters is a really simple one: If you are not sure, then don’t shoot.”
Mike McIlraith says while hunting fatalities are thankfully rare, research has shown that misidentification of the target is the largest firearms related risk to New Zealand deer hunters, and 80% of the time this involves members of the same hunting group.
The Authority says hunters should not feel pressured to take a shot: “Instead, hunters should take the time to analyse their target, wait and see if it is a hind or stag, how old is the animal, how many points does its antlers have? Identifying your target means never firing at sound, shape, colour or movement alone.”
Mike McIlraith says good hunters will slow down, and run through some simple mental checks:
- Can I see the whole animal, or could this be another hunter?
- Where are my hunting companions – could this be them or someone else?
- How much of the animal can you see, if it is a hind or stag, how old is the animal, how - many points does its antlers have?
“Taking a little extra time to identify your target and check the firing zone is the key to safer hunting. No meat or no trophy is better than no mate,” he says.
Poll: Does a savoury scone require cheese on top, or folded inside?
Help settle the great kiwi debate ... cheese on top, or folded inside?
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