A POPULAR pub will re-open as the brewery behind the business begins its search for a new landlord.

The Brookside Tavern in Rayleigh Road, Eastwood has been closed since April, when landlady Carol Curry did not have her lease renewed after 28 years at the helm.

Ms Curry has spoken previously of her devastation surrounding the loss of her job, with residents of Eastwood fearing that it would not be reopened as a pub and would be left to become an eyesore.

The pub has now been put on the market for a new leaseholder by brewery Stonegate.

The brewery is taking applications from all interested parties with a guide rent of £384 per week.

Eastwood Park Lib Dem councillor Rob McMullan believes this a good step forward for what has always been a “friendly neighbourhood pub”.

He said: “It is good news. It is a small premises and wouldn’t really have been viable as anything other than a pub really.

“It has been popular for a long time and I am pleased that the brewery is looking to keep it open really.

“It is a good friendly neighbourhood pub, a place to just go for a quick pint.

“It is on a healthy terrace of shops as well, with some nearby takeaways so people can quite easily go and get a drink while waiting for their food, something I have done myself on a couple of occasions.

“It is good to see an open pub on that bustling terrace. You see too many closed, boarded-up pubs and it isn’t goof for the area.”

Stonegate has stated they are seeking a “community driven individual” who is enthusiastic about driving trade “whether a new starter or experienced publican”.

Stonegate’s regional spokesman said: “A rare opportunity with potential.

“The pub has the opportunity to become one of the best community pubs in the town, it just needs a visionary to drive it.

“The business will flourish under the lead of an entrepreneurial spirit who understands Eastwood and the wider area.”