Iconic Sydney pub The Lansdowne will close in April, after its operators – the group behind Mary's and The Unicorn – chose not to renew the lease.

In a statement, Jake Smyth, who operates the venue with Kenny Graham, said the pub's landlords have decided to take over the pub's gig room – an integral part of the venue – and turn it into more accommodation for the on-site hostel.

"We are heartbroken to announce that our time with the beloved Lansdowne Hotel is coming to an end," said Smyth. "This was not a part of our vision for The Lansdowne, and as such, we have decided to call time on our custodianship of this iconic live music venue.

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"We will be working with the landlords to facilitate the remaining shows until the end of April."

The Lansdowne Hotel, on the corner of Broadway and City Road in Chippendale, has been pulling pints since 1933. For decades it was loved by local uni students for its cheap cocktail jugs and late-night licence. And for generations it's been a legendary live-music venue, hosting You Am I, The Living End, the Hard-Ons and The Preatures in the early stages of their careers. When it closed in 2015, punters of all ages decried the news – and celebrated when, in 2017, the Mary's Group took it over, jazzed it up and put on several gigs a week.

"Our reopening of the Lansdowne in June 2017 marked a seismic shift in the live-music scene in Sydney, after years of closures and devastating lockouts," says Smyth. "The Lansdowne came to be a figurehead in the recapturing of our collective conscience, a bulwark against the tide of closures and a voice against the apathy that had snuck into the core of the conversations around our vital night-time culture.

"The Lansdowne showed the power of art and its deeply important role in our city and our culture."

The Mary's Group will work with the building's landlords to ensure gigs continue until its lease ends in April.

"Despite this tough announcement today, we promise to continue to build stages and create spaces for the voices of our glorious city to emerge."

It remains to be seen what will happen to the venue's downstairs public bar once Mary's Group departs.