Weston-super-Mare: Tropicana future questioned by councillors

The Tropicana has been vacant on Weston-super-Mare's seafront for many years

Councillors have clashed with officers over who should become the new operator of a landmark seaside venue.

The Tropicana in Weston-super-Mare is set to undergo an £8.7m refurbishment in September.

Plans would see the former lido turned into an 8,000-capacity venue which North Somerset Council would lease out.

Some councillors have expressed concern the final decision about who it would be leased to would be taken by council officers and not elected officials.

The local authority is planning to put the 15-year lease out to tender through a procurement process.

Built in 1937, the former swimming pool on the beach is owned and run directly by the local authority.

The council has hired the Tropicana out as an arts and event space but has never covered its operational costs and the building is in need of significant repair.

It has also hosted art installations such as Banksy's Dismaland in 2015 and the SEE Monster exhibition in 2023.

The SEE Monster display was hugely popular in the summer of 2022

London-based architects RCKa, who specialise in "socially responsive architecture," have been handed the task of revamping the former lido.

The commercial operator, when selected, will have responsibility for maintaining the structure and running it as a "highly flexible venue".

The contract award will need to go to a vote before the council cabinet and could theoretically be voted down.

This would not give councillors the option of choosing between commercial operators.At a meeting on 6 March, councillor John Crockford-Hawley told officers present: "If we are not given the ability to make the decision, how can we take the can if it goes wrong?

"We elected members make the decision, for better and worse, and you officers do what you are told."

A decision is expected on the operators of the Tropicana later in the year.