Save our pub! Residents plea to keep pub opened in 1928 running
A community group has held a rally in the hope of saving their much-loved local village pub.
Residents of Featherstone have joined forces to create the Featherstone Red, White and Blue committee.
The Red, White and Blue pub has been situated on Cannock Road, Featherstone, since 1928 and is considered a staple gathering venue for locals.
The committee tabled a £350,000 bid to Stonegate Group, which owns the site, in hopes of running it as a committee enterprise.
However, the group says it has received multiple competitive market value offers which it is said to be considering.
Kevin Blair, chair of the committee, said: "The residents in Featherstone don’t want the pub to be sold, they want it to be a committee enterprise.
"We made an offer of £350,000 from the community and some high net worth individuals and investors.
"The plan is to develop the pub and to make it pay for itself, we would have a microbrewery in the front and make it a friendly family environment with entertainment."
Kevin served for 22 years in the Air Force and retired in Featherstone back in 2012.
"The pub has been there since 1928 and has been the home of weddings, christenings and other important gatherings," Kevin said.
"There are so many memories on the walls of the building, which currently sits shut and empty.
"The people of the village feel like everything is being shut down and this is the last straw.
"We want a public house, a gathering place, where people can meet and make memories."
The group has eight active members and has proposed plans for the venue which include a microbrewery and children's play area.
A spokesperson for Stonegate Pub Partners said: "The moratorium of the Asset of Community Value on the Red, White and Blue pub ran out in May 2022.
"We have since received a number of competitive market value offers which we are considering and so we cannot make any further comment on the sale of the pub."
