subject: What Will Pubs Be Like In 20 Years? [print this page] As we move into the 2010's, the world as we know it is changing, and pubs are no exception. In the very not too distant future, you will see the advent of 3D television, increasing number of petrol electric cars, a move toward renewable energy as well as, most interestingly a move to television delivered via the internet.
So what can we expect to change at the local pub? Will all be sitting in hover bar stools, playing virtual pool and drinking genetically modified beer that automatically sobers us up when we are getting too drunk? The answer to this question is "probably not," however what will change is the type of pubs we drink in.
Moving into the future, the biggest impact on pubs will not be technology, but will in fact be a social phenomenon that is happening all around us known as "gentrification."
Gentrification is the process by which wealthier people buy up property in traditionally poorer areas. As these people move in, businesses within the area change to accommodate such local clientele and the first to change without question is the local pub.
No more evident is this then in Sydney's Inner West. Suburbs such as Annandale, Balmain, Glebe and Newtown, once the domain of people from within the lower and middle tax brackets is now a playground for the white collar professionals looking to start a family.
Take this into consideration. Balmain and Annandale used to be home to workers at the Balmain coal mine. As many may already be aware, this was 100% working class which was no better illustrated by the fact 2 of the first 4 rugby league teams represented these suburbs.
30 years ago, a 3 bedroom house here set you back $70,000, which equated to about 3 - 5 years' salary. Today, a 2 bedroom "renovators dream" will cost you a little over $1 million dollars, equating to over 20 times the annual average salary. In the past, many of the local pubs in the area were known for violence and being less then classy, however one only has to take a look at the pubs now to realise the paradigm shift in the area.
In addition to this, the inner city suburb of Glebe just down the road, a quick 15 minutes walk from the CBD is also following in the same direction. Once owned by the Catholic Church, the suburb of Glebe was bought by the government and turned into public housing. However nowadays, the market rate of these terraces would likely be well over a $1 million dollars and as such much of the public housing tenants are being "moved on" and as a result, a couple of the pubs in the area have renovated and reopened.
So to answer the question first posed, the likely hood is that pubs will become more classy, catering to the more affluent in inner city areas where gentrification and a general upward shift in house prices is occurring (no hover pubs quite yet).
