A NEW sports bar and darts room will open in Salisbury city centre, if the latest plans go ahead.

Bosses of YOYO bar have lodged plans with Wiltshire Council to transform the former Just Jane Lingerie and Hosiery store, in Milford Street, into a bar.

Owner Kevin Welch said he hoped the bar would be a themed sports bar which would show “various male and female sporting events and to include established male and female darts and pool teams”.

Mr Welch said the reason behind the proposal was that there was “no other premises making this offer available in Salisbury”.

According to Mr Welch a new licensing application to open the bar from 10am until 3am, which may vary during depending on sporting events, will be submitted to the council.

In a letter to the council, fellow bar manager Aaron Huggins said: “I think this is a great idea not only for the late-night economy but also for the community.

“A lot of people travel out of Salisbury for a night now with more places to go people wouldn’t have to travel out of the city for a better night out.

“As a bar manager myself and a member of the Pubwatch committee we all work extremely hard to improve the late-night life in Salisbury. I think it’s just as important as the day trade and brings more people into our city."

Harnham resident Lucy Bennett added: “I think it would be great to have a fresh new place to go to in a night out in Salisbury. So many places have closed down lately and the night life has generally dropped.”

However, some have called for the application to be rejected. Neighbour Guy Macklin said that if permission was granted it would “continue to drag the city into the gutter”.

Greenfields Gunsmiths owner Alan Pike added: “Many times myself and my staff walk down Milford street with a feeling of embarrassment at the state of the street, more so after a Friday or Saturday night.”

City Lodge manager Agnieszka Zieniewicz said: “It’s very distressing for our guests, local residents and hotel staff to go through that crowd of drunk and loud people.”

The application will go before Salisbury City Council’s planning committee tonight.