Midsumma Festival, Melbourne’s annual LGBTQIA+ arts and cultural event, is in urgent need of new office space after receiving a sudden 30-day notice to vacate its premises. Its current tenancy ends this Saturday (13 July), forcing the team to move all non-essential items into storage and work remotely for the immediate future.
While the Festival’s team have been considering to relocate from their office in Hanover House, Southbank for some time, they were assured by previous management that the current tenancy agreement would run until early 2025. However, the notice to vacate was issued last month after new building management took over.
Midsumma shared an email announcement today (12 July) asking the community for help. The notice states, ‘Our low core funding levels have always prevented us from paying commercial rental rates… Despite hiring a real estate broker and making significant attempts to secure a new space, we have been looking for something suitable and affordable in or near the CBD, even though many such spaces have been vacant for some time.
‘We appeal to property owners, community members and supporters to assist us in this time of need.‘
The team is seeking a vacant office space in or near central Melbourne at an affordable rent, and requires a minimum of 200 to 250 square metres. Access on evenings and weekends, and a loading dock or similar to facilitate staff working on various community events are also essential.
In 2024, Midsumma Festival featured over 200 events involving more than 500 culture-makers. It attracted over 281,500 attendees.
The next iteration of Midsumma Festival is due for 19 January to 9 February 2025.
The Festival also runs year-round professional development and mentoring programs.
