A DENTON pub looks set to be saved after a brewery made sure it stayed as one.
Locals feared the Penny Farthing would be lost forever after it was closed and put up for sale.
But the Correspondent has learned a deal is likely with a party keen to keep it as it was.
And brewers Thwaites may have turned down a higher offer as they wanted it to stay that way.
Campaigners gathered at an open day organised by estate agents Fleurets as the pub was on the market for £295,000.
About two dozen interested parties cast their eye over it and the highest bidder is thought to have wanted to demolish the existing building and erected flats on the St Anne’s Road site.
However, Thwaites – who always said they hoped it would re-open as a pub – are thought to have said no and accepted a lower price.
Fleurets and Thwaites’ insisted the Penny Farthing had not been sold yet.
However, it is believed legal talks over the deal have meant it cannot be rubber-stamped.
News of the deal and the buyer’s intentions is sure to delight members of the Save The Penny action group.
They hoped to buy the building and not only reopen it as a pub but also as a community hub.
They have applied to Tameside Council to transfer it to the community and, if approved, have six months to buy it.
Katy Robinson said: “We want it to be a pub but also a community enterprise.
“The Penny Farthing is a real focal point for the community and there are a lot of older people in the area, many of whom may feel cut off now the pub has closed.”
Fellow campaigner Audra Bickerdyke believed a garden that is being made for display at the Chelsea Flower Show can be donated to brighten up the car park.
She told the Correspondent: “We want to run one side as a pub but make the other more family-orientated and have a proper garden.
“Also we could maybe hold activities like yoga or Zumba, maybe even something like horticultural therapy.
“There’s an awful lot of potential to the building and what we can do with it. There aren’t many places to go in Denton.”
Even though the pub closed in February and former licensee Ben Jordan cleared his belongings out, a licence still remains in place.
Fixtures and fittings that remain on the premises at the time of completion will be included in the sale.
The apparent plans will also please Denton and Reddish MP Andrew Gwynne, who lives nearby and backed the residents’ campaign.
He said: “The pub is right at the heart of the community and I’m sure that, with the right offer, it could be a success once more.”
Thwaites brewery always believed the Penny Farthing could be sold and reopened as a pub.
A spokesman said: “It’s been good to see the strength of feeling in the community. We know many people have made many memories through visiting the pub.
“We are confident that it could continue to be a thriving pub, particularly in light of such community support.”