A FORMER pub in Blaenavon which was home to a secret cannabis farm revealed during a fire last year has been put up for sale.

The three-storey Market Tavern on Broad Street was believed to be unoccupied when the blaze in the early hours of Saturday, November 14 ravaged through the top floor.

Priced at offers in excess of £100,000, it is listed as an eight-bedroom terraced property with key features of a commercial premises and a self-contained flat.

Cllr Stuart Evans, who represents the Blaenavon ward at Torfaen council and also sits on the town council, wants to see an end to the building’s sorry history.

“The building is at the heart of the street scene in Blaenavon and I know that all the councillors are keen to see it put back to use,” said cllr Evans.

“It was a great shock to find out what was going on in the building – it is just not the sort of thing that you imagine would happen in somewhere like Blaenavon.”

Cllr Evans added that similar to issues at Ty Mawr, the building is in private ownership so it reduces the influence the council can have on improving the property.

“It’s an eyesore in the centre of the town and from our point of view, there is little that we can do to make improvements,” he said.

“I don’t know where any refurbishments have taken place inside the building following the fire, although I’m not sure whether it is an eight-bedroom terraced property.”

During the fire in November, Broad Street was closed off due to safety concerns of the building’s structure, which angered local businesses that missed out on weekend trade.

“It was a shame that businesses and traders did lose out when the fire happened, but it was also due to high winds that caused concern with the fire authority and police,” said cllr Evans.

A spokeswoman from Gwent Police confirmed that a man from the Newport area was arrested in December 2015 in relation to the incident, but was released without charge and with no further action in March.