Work to begin next month on former Wolverhampton Varsity bar
Work to renovate a landmark former pub in Wolverhampton city centre as part of plans by bosses at the city's university to breathe new life into the building will begin next month, it has been announced.
Live music venue The Varsity, in Stafford Street, closed at the end of June last year ahead of its purchase by the University of Wolverhampton.
The pub is separated from the university's MA building by an alleyway and today the university confirmed work on the project is due to begin at the start of March.
The Varsity, formerly The George Hotel, dates back to 1933.
University vice-chancellor, Professor Geoff Layer, said: "The university is looking forward to bringing the George back into use.
"It's a landmark building in Wolverhampton city centre, so is in a great position to provide useful advice and information to people from the region about the university," he added.
Work to revamp the pub is part of wider £45 million redevelopment plans at the university.
Plans were submitted last week for a new £25m science block which would see the five-storey MB building that fronts onto Stafford Street transformed.
A current single-storey extension will be demolished on the site to make way for a bigger six-storey building covering more than 6,000sq m.
Experiments
The building will feature lab facilities for around 2,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students and will be home to around 150 staff. It will also include an area from Stafford Street through which the public can view the inside of the building and see experiments and teaching in action.
It is hoped the first part of the new building will open in September next year with the remainder following in December.
Other parts of the development would see a new £15m building for the business school being constructed on the north campus opposite Molineux.
This would be built on land between the school's current MN base and the school of health and wellbeing's MH building in Molineux Street. An outdoor all-weather sports pitch is being created at the Lomas Street halls of residence.
Last year, when the pub was linked with the redevelopment, the Wolverhampton branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, said it would be a "great pity" to lose another bar in the city centre.
