The Sunshine Coast's largest live music venue is shutting down, with the owners saying they would need at least double the number of bookings to stay afloat.

The Station is the second live music business to close at the Birtinya site after NightQuarter shut down in 2022.

The Station, a 1,600-capacity venue, hosted live music, retail stores, a bar, food trucks and a skate park, which recently shut down.

Owners Chris and Lauren Hignett announced unexpectedly on Tuesday that the last show would be Pete Murray on Friday, January 2.

The Station owners Chris and Lauren Hignett  (ABC News: Madeline Grace)

Mr and Mrs Hignett said they invested about $1 million into the venue before opening in March 2024 and lost another million trying to keep it afloat.

The couple also sold their family home to fund it, but said they would need a cash injection of another $500,000 to save the business.

Renowned Australian bands such as Temper Trap, The Rubens, San Cisco, Old Mervs and The Wombats played at The Station.

Multiple live music events that were booked for 2026, including the popular Australian band The Rions, would now be rescheduled, the couple said.

NightQuarter, the site's former live music venture, operated between 2020 and 2022.

NightQuarter co-owner Michelle Christoe previously told the ABC the Birtinya entertainment precinct fell prey to slow economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, floods and the rising cost of living.

Dreams dashed

Mr and Mrs Hignett said that since opening, they had welcomed about 80,000 ticket holders into the venue, but the issue was not a lack of local support for shows.

Mr Hignett said they had one to three shows a month with about 65 per cent of tickets selling (650 to 700 tickets per show), which he said was above the national average of 55 per cent.

"But we need at least six of those shows per month," he said.

"Our spend per head is down substantially, probably by about 30 per cent."

The Station, formerly known as NightQuarter, reopened at Birtinya in March 2024. (ABC News: Madeline Grace)

He said tours dropped off from March 2025 for some "unknown reason".

According to Mr Hignett, a lot of Australian band promoters were "risk-averse" and would rather sell out a smaller venue than sell just 65 per cent of a larger venue.

The couple said Team MusiCare, a charity for children with disabilities, would also close and that they would seek to reach an agreement with Stockland to end their lease.