PLANS have been unveiled for a Helensburgh former bar premises to reopen under the new name of The Comet.
The premises at 8 James Street have lain empty since 2019 when The Logie Baird shut its doors, apart from a brief spell in 2022 when it was known as the Dapper Dug.
Before being turned into a bar, the building was home to the town’s La Scala cinema, and then an amusement arcade.
Argyll and Bute Council has now published three planning applications relating to the site – one for re-painting, one for signage installation, and one for listed building consent.
The authority’s planning officers are expected to reach a decision on the applications by Amber Taverns by early November, with the public now able to view the plans and submit feedback.
No design statement has yet been published as part of the applications, but drawings show the planned new name of The Comet.
The building was put on sale in April 2025 for offers over £225,000, and was sold to Amber Taverns at the end of August.
Former site owners Cara and Milan Nikolic closed The Logie Baird in August 2019 despite a successful appeal against a curfew imposed by the Argyll and Bute licensing board.
The board imposed the punishment of an 11pm curfew on Fridays and Saturdays in April 2019 after a spate of incidents.
Two years later, plans were announced for the building to reopen as The Dapper Dug, whose parent company was CJ Leisure Group.
But it was closed within weeks of opening in the summer of 2022, and the premises has been unused ever since.
It is now expected to undergo a full refurbishment by Amber Taverns, which now plans to open its 13th site in Scotland.
To view the plans and submit feedback, visit the council’s planning portal at argyll-bute.gov.uk and use the reference numbers 25/01458/LIB, 25/01456/ADV, and 25/01460/PP.
