Overview
Huge news: Darlinghurst is set to be home to Soho House Sydney, Australia's first outpost for the ultra-exclusive membership club. The much-hyped global brand which has locations across the world from Berlin to Miami, is now looking to transform a building on the corner of Crown and Foley Street above Shady Pines Saloon, with ambitious plans in the works to completely reshape the space.
Plans for an estimated $24-million multi-storey mega-venue have been lodged, with the proposed building featuring a restaurant and bar, gym, cabaret facilities and a rooftop terrace and pool.
The plans also reveal anticipated changes to the facade, replacing the building's fairly rundown exterior with a simple, sleek and modern cream and brown design in line with other Soho Houses around the world.
The Darlinghurst building has a storied history, taking many forms over the years including Bolot's Embassy Dancing Academy between 1924–30, the Playbox Theatre and Stanley Twig's auction house in the 1930s and, most recently, housing several retail tenants throughout the 2000s including an espresso bar, convenience store and a nail salon.
Fans of affordable drinks and Americana aesthetics, never fear: it looks like Shady Pines won't be disrupted by the opening of Soho House Sydney, with the floor plan revealing an allocated zone for "tenancy" on the basement floor where the bar currently resides. Concrete Playground reached out to the Swillhouse team for comment on the future of the site, but they didn't get back to us in time for publication.
Australia's first ever Soho House was originally set to open on Domain Road in Melbourne's South Yarra, but developers were forced to ditch plans at the direction of VCAT in late October, after strong opposition from local councils and a residents' group.
Now boasting over 40 houses across the globe, Soho House first opened in London in 1995 as a private members club for clientele in the creative sphere. It has since spread throughout Europe and North America, opening restaurants, cinemas, workspaces, spas and bedrooms alongside the traditional clubs. From New York to Istanbul, exclusivity is a common global denominator.
If you want to apply for a membership, you can explore all of the options and lodge an application at the Soho House membership page.
Shady Pines
Soho House Sydney is set to open at 256 Crown Street, Darlinghurst.