Landlord fears for future as car park shuts for pier works

A WESTON-super-Mare pub landlord is fearing for his pub after its nearest car park was closed as part of the restoration of the town’s iconic Victorian pier.

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Jonathan Dudd’s family have owned the Captain’s Cabin on Birnbeck Road since the 1980s and in recent years have taken it back from tenants to run themselves. The long-awaited reopening of Birnbeck Pier, just a few minutes’ walk away, should be a major boon for the pub.

But the construction work at the pier has seen the car park on Birnbeck Road almost entirely closed off since September, which Mr Dudd said had reduced footfall at the pub-restaurant. He said: “If this carries on for the next two or three years they'll be lucky if there’s Captain’s Cabin left, to be honest.”

With the closest sea view in Weston, he said the Captain’s Cabin was a “destination pub” people would often drive to. He said: “We are very, very reliant on the car park, Sundays and weekends especially.”