An iconic town building which has been under wraps for months will NOT be a Wetherspoons – as was rumoured – instead the decision on what it will be is up to the community.

For many years, there has been much speculation about what would become of Cockermouth’s former Grand Theatre in Station Road.

But the owner has confirmed that while he was aware of interest from the pub chain Wetherspoons, he did not follow it up.

“A factory shop was interested in the building. We also heard Wetherspoons were interested.

“We do not think we could live here if we brought Wetherspoons into town,” said Josh Church, whose family business bought the building six years ago.

“We also don’t want to turn it into offices or residential as we think it’s too nice.”

He would like to hear from a range of people and businesses that are interested in using the 10,000square foot space and thinks it could be a real community asset.

It has been given a major facelift.

And after months wrapped in scaffolding and sheeting, it is due to be unveiled in the next few weeks.

“It’s such a nice looking building but was not looking attractive,” said Josh.

“We’ve repainted everything and re-roofed the front. There are new windows and a shop front. It should look smart in town.”

He would like to see it evolving into a community hub with cafe, restaurant, makers’ space and retail.

“We will open in the next few weeks and will then have conversations with people about how it can be used. We want to work together with the town,” he said.

“We can mould to what people would like. It could be great for the community with all sorts of different things.

“We can do the building work but want people to come forward and operate within it.”

Josh’s family business owns 10 pubs, including eight in Cumbria, and a mix of residential and commercial properties throughout the UK.

He and his partner, Amy Holliday, recently opened the Tithe Barn and Tithe Tap, a few doors down from the Grand Theatre. They invested £450,000 in the nine-bedroom boutique hotel and bar.

“Cockermouth has a great feel and staycations are a big thing. We have a waiting list for the Tithe Barn,” said Amy.

Anyone who would like to contact Josh and discuss options for the town centre space can email him at joshua@elnapm.co.uk