A FIRE-RAVAGED pub at the centre of a police investigation could be demolished and replaced by houses, as a fresh appeal for witnesses has been made.

The owner of the Elphinstone Arms, Scott Dodds, has applied for planning permission for a trio of three-bedroomed houses on the site of the pub, which has been closed since May 2014.

The Elphinstone Arms was left badly damaged by a fire, which was believed to have been started deliberately, just eight days after it was closed down amid fears for public safety.

Police Scotland applied to East Lothian Council’s licensing board to issue a closure order on the pub, after a previous incident of wilful fire-raising while the then-licensee Malcolm Fleming was in the flat above the bar.

Subsequent licence reviews by the board have been met with police opposition, although the structural damage to the building has meant it has not been in any condition to reopen.

Police Scotland said it investigated the first fire on May 21, 2014, and was keen to speak to anyone with information. A spokesperson said: “Extensive enquiries, including the use of forensics, were conducted and any new information received will be thoroughly investigated.

“Anyone with information is urged to call Police Scotland on 101 or speak to the charity Crimestoppers anonymously via 0800 555 111.”

The Elphinstone Arms first hit the headlines in February 2014 when manager Margaret Dodds, the owner’s mother, had to lock the doors, with patrons inside, after a group of about 20 men, wearing balaclavas, tried to storm it.

During a police investigation, it was discovered the company which held its licence had been dissolved two years previously and, with no current licence, officers ordered the pub to close.

Attempts to reopen the pub with occasional licences were met with police objections on the grounds of public safety.

However, in April 2014 the pub was granted a new licence, after local residents lobbied the licensing board insisting it was the heart of their community.

Within weeks, however, it had been targeted by fire-raisers twice, and the second blaze led Police Scotland to hold an emergency meeting with the licensing board where they successfully shut it down again.

In a planning application now lodged with East Lothian Council, Mr Dodds outlines proposals for the ‘downtaking’ of the pub and adjacent storage areas.

He wants to replace them with three new houses, with the first opening onto Main Street, and the other two accessed through a side entrance between the former pub and neighbouring house.