A Brighton pub which claims the best views in the city has been closed while it undergoes building work to make sure it’s safe.
The Setting Sun in Windmill Street closed over the Christmas break after having been open at increasingly irregular times over the past few months after the leasehold was advertised for sale for £60,000 last summer.
The previous landlords, who tried karaoke and drag nights to bring in a fresh crowd, had been in dispute with at least one close neighbour because of noise – but the city council said that it had not received an official complaint since late 2016.
This year, builders have been seen at work on the site, ripping out fixtures and fittings including the elaborate chandeliers installed by the last owners.
Punch Taverns, which owns the site, said it hoped that it would reopen very soon.
A spokeswoman said: “We are currently in the progress of completing some health and safety works to ensure the pub is safe, legal and compliant. These are standard health and safety works including fire risk assessment and regulations.
“We will then be looking to reopen the pub at the earliest opportunity.”
A city council spokeswoman said: “A noise abatement was served in 2006 on the previous owners/occupiers. The last noise complaint on the premises was made on 10 November, 2016.”
So they tried to “bring in a fresh crowd”? Yes, that figures – the local crowd clearly wasn’t to their taste. I remember being turned away on the stroke of midnight one Friday night when popping in with a friend for a nightcap on the way home, despite the bar staff and a bunch of cronies sitting at the bar drinking. I also remember the last Windmill Street Party, when they were happy to cash in on the event while it was busy, but when the party packed up at around 7 and a few of the residents wanted to stay out for a couple more drinks, we were shut out due to a “private party”.