THE DOORS at the New Inn at Rockland St Mary look like they’ll stay firmly shut for a while yet. You’ll recall that this beautiful riverside pub closed in November. At the time its owners Punch Taverns told me that they were in discussion with the leaseholder and “hope to resolve the situation as soon as possible.” A month on and it’s clear that the leaseholder is not returning and Punch has yet to find anyone willing to take it on. The company’s latest statement runs as follows: “It's always our priority that our pubs remain open and trading and serving the local community. We are looking for the right partner to drive the business forward and we are currently talking to interested parties. We will re-open as soon as we recruit a new licensee.” There are some pubs along the Wherryman’s Way which I always half expect to be in trouble, but not this one. To me The New Inn seemed to have everything going for it – good moorings for both boats and cars and a decent reputation. They have to get it open by Easter …don’t they?
I took the time to contact Punch Taverns to find what the state-of-play was with the New Inn, a pub I'm somewhat fond of. Having ignored me twice, a very young man contacted me back telling me he had several interested parties, the previous tenants 'didn't have the experience to capitalise on the fantastic opportunity' and would I like to hear the figures! He was trying to sell it to me, if he'd read my email he would have realised I was moving to Rockland. Overall a very poor show, and I'm very worried about the future of the New Inn. Anyone got any news?
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