Wetherspoon has announced it will close one of its popular Dorset pubs.
The last pint will be pulled at The Nightjar, in Victoria Road, Ferndown, later this year after bosses decided they no longer want to stay in the town.
JD Wetherspoon says it has decided not to renew its lease for the building when it expires in September and added it will offer jobs to staff in surrounding pubs.
The 7,000 sq ft building is currently being advertised to let on Fleurets as a “prime town centre location”.
A spokesman for the firm said: “We can confirm that Wetherspoon has decided not to renew the lease at The Nightjar (Ferndown) when it runs out in September.
“At this stage, there is no final closure date for the pub.
“The company will be offering jobs to all staff, in the surrounding Wetherspoon pubs.”
After September, punters looking for cheap booze will have to go to The Man in the Wall in Wimborne town centre or the Parkstone and Heatherlands in Wimborne Road, Winton.
Read more: Wetherspoon pub in Bournemouth applies for extension on its licence
Cllr Mike Parkes, ward councillor for Ferndown North, said: “It’s a very busy and very popular pub in the town.
“I have been there from time to time as it’s one of the few pubs in the town so it will definitely have a big impact on the nighttime economy.
“We are about to launch some stuff around the town centre regeneration which is about bringing more businesses into the area so this will be a blow to that.”
This is not the first Wetherspoon pub to close in Dorset in recent years.
In Lansdowne Road, Bournemouth, the Christopher Creek closed its doors early last year, with the company saying “on occasion Wetherspoon does close some of its pubs and this is the case here”.
Read more: Bournemouth Wetherspoon pub secures longer opening hours
The chain, which runs 834 watering holes, recently posted that like-for-like sales had jumped 12.2 per cent over the three months to April 30.
Wetherspoons said sales over the Easter week were the “highest ever” for the company as it looks set to post record total sales for the year to July.
It added that the first bank holiday weekend in May was “exceptionally strong” and included its busiest Saturday performance on record.
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