A FORMER Greenock pub is set to re-open after being given a new lease of life.

The Roxburgh Bar building on the corner of Roxburgh Street and Trafalgar Street is being transformed into a furniture shop.

The pub and function suite have been closed for several years and had fallen into a state of disrepair, with the grounds overgrown.

But local man James Southern is set to take on the lease and will transform the former bar into a sale room where people can buy and sell furniture.

It will re-open with the name ‘Paddy’s Market’.

Mr Southern, 52, who is originally from Dublin but now lives in Greenock, told the Tele: “I’m looking forward to getting the building open again and getting started.

“It’s something a wee bit different.”

Some work has already taken place to tidy up the outside area while the building itself has been given a facelift with a fresh lick of paint.

Indoors, the former bar and lounge has been stripped out and is being converted into the sale room.

Mr Southern is planning to have an open event on Sundays where people can come along and set up their own tables from which they can buy and sell goods.

The former New Roxburgh Bar building closed in 2010 and has been empty ever since.

A bid was made three years ago to change it to a convenience store and off-sales, but members of the licensing board rejected the application due to the location of the premises across from the Salvation Army and near to other centres providing addiction support services.