Hundreds of people have signed a petition to restore a Helensburgh pub’s late weekend hours after the couple who run the business admitted that it was becoming unviable.
Cara and Milan Nikolic also said that the premises will close completely unless the Argyll and Bute licensing board overturns its decision to reduce its licensing time from 2am to 1am at weekends, with an 11pm curfew.
The pub announced on its Facebook page that it is now closing completely at 11pm on Friday nights due to lack of customers.
Its Saturday night hours will remain the same for the time being – but the Logie Baird’s Facebook page also said that the future was ‘very bleak’.
By this afternoon the petition, which only went online three days earlier, had been signed by more than 350 people.
The licensing board made the decision last month after a near three-hour hearing after Police Scotland asked for a review of the licence.
The police revealed that 98 incidents had taken place since the Nikolics took over the premises in February 2017, with 79 of those happening between midnight and 2am on weekend nights.
A statement from Mrs Nikolic on the online petition said: “The strict 11pm curfew and earlier closing hours have made Logies unviable in just two weeks.
“The livelihood of our nine staff, plus five DJs and five door stewards, is at stake. Logie’s simply cannot survive six months until the next licensing board.
“Let’s not be a town with no entertainment for our young people and with our rejuvenated C-listed cinema lying empty once again.
“Since being told we were being sent for a review in November we have made significant changes and operational improvements working with Police Scotland and have had five incidents in the last five months. This is great work.
“We would all like no incidents, but let’s put this into perspective and in the context that we have a 350 people capacity and used to have 700 people through our doors each weekend.
“This decision has to be reconsidered urgently – please restore our late licence and return the 1am curfew enjoyed by the rest of the town.
“Otherwise Logies WILL close.
“Let’s move forward, not backward, Helensburgh.”
The licensing board’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 25. Its first meeting after the six-month review period is set for Tuesday, November 12.
Leave a Reply