WETHERSPOON has announced a six-week delay in the opening of its new pub in the old town hall building in Wellington, writes Barry Knott.

Work on the £2.3 million development started at the end of February and the pub was set to open for business on Tuesday, July 19. But that date has been put back to the end of August due to asbestos in the building.

A statement issued to the WWN yesterday said: “The handover and opening dates for the new development in Wellington have been revised.

“The reason for the delay is due to uncovering asbestos within the fabric of the building after construction commenced. There is still programme risk as asbestos still needs to be removed from a power substation which we have no direct control over. However, we are pushing for this to be resolved.” 

The Iron Duke – the name chosen by readers of the WWN – will now officially open on Tuesday, August 30.

It will create about 50 new jobs and will be the second big pub venture to open in the town this year – the Green Dragon in South Street has undergone a £400,000 refurbishment which is almost complete.

The opening of a Wetherspoon will be a big boost for the centre of Wellington, particularly with the closure of shops and the King’s Arms, in the past couple of years.

It seems almost certain the King’s will not re-open as a pub again, as previous landlords have struggled to make it pay.

The opening of the Green Dragon and Wetherspoon would make it even more difficult for a new landlord taking over the King’s to survive.

A number of pubs have closed in the area over the past ten years with skittle alleys being closed, knocked down or turned into accommodation.

The Conservative Club and Vintage Arms have both built second alleys to try and plug the gap and, fortunately, the two main skittle leagues in town have remained strong.