A Weymouth man recovering from alcohol addiction plans to open the town's first no-alcohol 'pub' and safe space this summer as a ‘community hub for everyone.’

Sam Watson, 37, plans to open Dry Dock, a pub-themed venue that members of the community can visit without the influence of alcohol.

It will sell soft drinks as well as alcohol free alternatives to beer, wine and spirits, including mocktails, alongside a range of hot drinks.

The idea for the new venue in Weymouth town centre came following Mr Watson’s own experiences with alcohol.

He said: “I struggled with mental health problems and found the solution in alcohol and self-medication, and I ended up as a dependant drinker for a number of years. I have been in recovery for about three and a half years, and have not had a drink for about 18 months.

“I feel that I want to give something back to the community because a lot of people got behind me when I was having a tough time and I want to give that back.”

He added: “From personal experience, a friend approached me a little while ago to talk about their relationship with alcohol.”

Mr Watson recounted that they couldn’t meet at either one of their houses and it had to be during the evening due to work commitments: “I couldn’t find anywhere that was open [that didn’t serve alcohol], so I ended up having to rent a meeting room for the evening and I felt that there had to be a better solution – so I thought 'let’s open that venue'."

As well as investing his own money into the business, he has also set up a Just Giving page to raise funds for the future community-based project.

At the time of writing, £1,300 has been donated, nearing the £1,500 goal. 

Mr Watson says his intention is not to compete with venues in town that serve alcohol, but to offer a safe space in the town centre ‘with a pub-type atmosphere,’ heavily inspired by the community pub in the village he grew up which he described as ‘the place.'

He said he is very close to signing the lease to the old Friths Opticians & Audiologists unit on St Thomas Street as a Community Interest Company (a special type of limited company which exists to benefit the community rather than private shareholders) with profits going back into the community.

Ideally, Mr Watson would like to see the venue open this summer and the new business plans on featuring all the normal things you’d find in a pub including live music, pub quizzes, themed evenings and a dart board in order to ‘encourage people coming together and having a good time – without the distractions and complications that come with alcohol.’

The aspiring no-alcohol-publican said: “I enjoy socialising with people and when I first got into recovery I didn’t feel comfortable going to pubs because it was too difficult for me.”

As it is a community-based project, Mr Watson encourages anyone who would like to collaborate or anyone with ideas to get in contact with him.

The venue already plans on collaborating with Bees Knees Bakes, which is based on Portland and will be supplying food, as well as mental health support group Andy’s Man Club Portland, of which Mr Watson is a founding member.

The Veteran’s Hub, where Mr Watson drops in once a week as a support worker for Reach Drug and Alcohol Services in Weymouth, will also be involved in the venture.

You can visit the Just Giving page here: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/drydockweymouth?utm_term=gM9QEar2Q&fbclid=IwAR39Dm9ieX28zjmWWH_EBNajraDlDFWR5E_5H79i3eeXWzhOXHAaG_2OcRU.

For more information you can also visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid0HYxEd46c9H6ySpzGpFTCoJJECTD5qmoc2VNEBLRqYt27CTNRGUW6imoaS5Fs8GUPl&id=100090104267253