The owners of a proposed swingers club at the centre of a neighbourhood dispute have hit back at locals who have opposed its opening.
The two-storey building on City Road in South Melbourne, once home to an IT business, will soon be transformed into a swingers club called Pineapples Lifestyle Bar with a capacity for 200 people.
The ‘adult lifestyle meeting place’ describes itself as ‘Melbourne’s premier adult playground’ and plans to operate between 10am and 2am every day, offering drinks as well as live music.
The planned venue has whipped locals into a fury with concerns over safety issues, parking problems and how the venue might impact the suburb’s character.
The owners of the club have hit back and said they’re creating a ’boutique, inclusive, respectful and discreet venue for mature consenting adults’.
A spokesperson for the venue said it would be ‘complimentary’ to the area and that the location was decided following consultations with the ‘lifestyle community’.
They added that guests cannot pay other guests or staff for sexual acts as it is not a brothel, strip club or massage parlour.
Its classification as a sex-on-premises venue means guests instead pay an admission fee to enter and engage in sexual activities with others.
The owners of a proposed swingers club at a building in South Melbourne (pictured) have claimed the venue will be ‘complimentary’ to the local neighbourhood
The spokesperson said the venue will ‘entice guests’ from across Australia to visit the area and boost other local businesses.
‘There are very few parallels to our niche, destination business,’ they told 7News.
‘This will entice guests to visit the region, creating new employment and generating benefits for the staff we hire and other businesses in the local area.’
‘We expect people will travel from all over Victoria and Australia-wide, utilising local overnight accommodation, restaurants, cafés, daytime activity centres such as the South Melbourne Market, and public transport, taxi services/ride-share services for transportation.’
Visitors will be required to purchase tickets in advance and they will be vetted.
Local architect Tony Baenziger has led the charge against the venue and started a petition with more than 400 people signing and demanding the venue not open.
‘It’s really important for people to understand that we don’t have a problem with the business – even though it’s not my cup of tea,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘We just don’t want it here, it’s not the right place.’
The petition claims the venue is ‘entirely inappropriate … given its proximity to residential areas, schools, and family-oriented businesses’.
Locals have protested the opening of the club due to its close proximity to schools, ‘family-friendly’ businesses and its potential effect on the area’s character
‘Despite numerous objections from local residents and business owners, the Council has granted a permit that disregards the character and values of our neighbourhood and what the area should try to aspire to in the future,’ the petition reads.
‘We are appealing Council’s decision at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).’
The proposal to VCAT will also be based on potential parking issues in surrounding areas, an ‘excessive’ 200-person capacity, safety concerns and a ‘lack of waste management plan’.
Regarding parking issues, the spokesperson said each patron will be provided with a ‘map’ of allowed and prohibited parking areas alongside any ticket purchased.
They added that the venue will continue to push forward with plans to open despite the community backlash.
‘We will be fighting for our vision to create Melbourne’s premier purpose-built adult playground for the growing number of mature, consenting adults who would like to experience something more than a vanilla lifestyle,’ they said.
Daily Mail Australia has approached Pineapples Lifestyle Bar for comment.
