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Blackpool's oldest pier goes up for sale

News imageIanS/Geograph North Pier above the sands at Blackpool with the sea in the backgroundIanS/Geograph
The estate agents said they are looking for "sensible offers" for the Victorian pier

Blackpool's oldest pier has gone up for sale.

The Grade II-listed North Pier, which opened on 21 May 1863, was bought in 2011 by the Sedgwick family, which also owns the town's other two piers.

Estate agents Avison Young said the landmark's turnover last year was £2.3m, and they are looking for "sensible offers" for the Victorian prromenade attraction.

Directors for Northern Victorian Pier Ltd said selling it was "a decision we've made with a heavy heart", but that they had "chosen to focus [their] attention on the wider portfolio, including Central and South Piers".

News imageOliver Mills/Geograph Showing two of four Victorian pier kiosks, as well as a general view of the iron substructure of North Pier above the sands at Blackpool with the sea in the background. People are milling up and down it in the sunshineOliver Mills/Geograph
The Grade II listed North Pier opened on 21 May 1863

The building, which predates the resort's tower by 31 years, stretches about 1,410 ft (430m) out from the shore.

It was built from a wooden deck above a substructure of cast iron girders.

North Pier currently employs ten full-time, three part-time, and approximately 40 seasonal staff and includes the Joe Longthorne Theatre, an amusement arcade, a two-tier Victorian carousel, electric train and a variety of cafes, takeaways and bars.

The town's other two piers, the Central and South piers, were opened in 1868 and 1893 respectively.

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