Weston's Tropicana would hold about 5,000, not 10,000, under the plan councillors vote on 10 November. The bigger venue has a £6.6m gap; Live Nation may walk.
Updated 11 November: councillors approved the smaller scheme at Full Council on 10 November. The council puts the cost at £14.075m, with an indoor space for up to 400 and completion by November 2028. Read what was approved.
North Somerset Council is being advised to scale back its plans for the Tropicana. Under the recommended option, the Weston-super-Mare seafront venue would hold around 5,000 people, not the 10,000 approved in the spring.
Full Council decides on Tuesday 10 November. The report to that meeting says the 10,000-capacity scheme now has a funding gap of about £6.6m after detailed design work. The smaller scheme fits the existing budget almost exactly.
The catch is the operator. Live Nation, through its company West Coast Venue Co. Ltd, signed an agreement in July on the basis of a 10,000-capacity venue. The report warns the smaller scheme “is not expected to satisfy” that agreement and could lead to “a reduced offer and/or the withdrawal of Live Nation from the project” (Council report, 10 November).
What the 5,000-capacity plan includes
Officers call the recommended scheme Option 2a. The report says it would include:
- resurfacing of the outdoor arena
- essential permanent facilities for visitors and for running events
- indoor and community space
- refurbishment of the listed frontage
- strengthened sea defences
- core utilities designed, where practicable, to allow later expansion
A capacity of 5,000 is still more than the venue’s previous operating capacity of 3,000, the report says. Under this option the operator would pay for temporary facilities and anti-terrorism measures event by event, rather than the council installing everything at the outset.
The capital budget would rise by £0.1m to £14.1m. The extra would come from underspends elsewhere in the council’s Levelling Up programme, money the report says cannot be used for anything else. The existing funding is:
| Source | Amount |
|---|---|
| Local Regeneration Fund (government) | £9.53m |
| Cultural Development Fund (Arts Council England) | £2.01m |
| North Somerset Council match funding | £2.43m |
| Total | £13.97m |
Why the 10,000 venue is not recommended
The bigger scheme had an indicative gap of around £6m when councillors approved it in April and May. Design work to RIBA Stage 3, finished in September, firmed that up at about £6.6m. The report blames inflation, counter-terrorism requirements under “Martyn’s Law”, sea wall and drainage work, and energy rules, partly offset by cuts to the arena works.
Without new grants, the council would have to borrow to fill the gap. The report puts the net cost of that route at £8.37m over 28 years.
Live Nation sent a revised offer by email on 23 and 27 October. It would put more of its own money into the build in return for a “substantively reduced” rent. It would also build up to full-size events gradually over at least two years. Officers model that at a net cost of £5.1m. They do not recommend it because the offer is “high-level only”, would take weeks to negotiate and risks missing the deadlines attached to the grant money.
The report also says the larger scheme could bring 250,000 to 500,000 extra visitors to the town each year.
The swimming pool and the other options
The report sets out six options in all, with these net costs to the council over 28 years (the build plus 25 years of running it):
| Option | What it is | Net cost |
|---|---|---|
| 1a | 10,000 capacity, Live Nation, council borrows | £8,373,935 |
| 1b | 10,000 capacity, Live Nation’s revised offer | £5,101,642 |
| 2a | About 5,000, Live Nation or another operator (recommended) | £183,722 |
| 2b | About 5,000, run by the council | £6,014,467 |
| 3 | Swimming or leisure pool | £40,927,440 |
| 4 | Stop the project and mothball the building | £9,180,245 |
A large leisure pool with waves and flumes would cost £15m to £25m to build, before the work needed to prepare the site, the report says. Switching would probably lose the Arts Council money. It notes that three earlier planning consents for a pool-led scheme were never built.
Mothballing would not be free either. The council would still pay to secure and maintain the building, and might have to repay grants. Before the project, running the venue cost the council £100,000 to £200,000 a year, excluding major repairs.
The Weston-super-Mare Civic Society put forward its own proposal in October, with swimming facilities including a fun pool taking about 40% of the site. The report discusses it but does not recommend it.
If Live Nation pulls out
The report asks councillors to let officers renegotiate with Live Nation if it comes back with new terms. If that fails, the council would look for another commercial operator. That process would take about 18 months and cost £50,000 to £120,000 in marketing, legal and staff time, the report says. The council running the venue itself, Option 2b, is offered only as a fallback.
Councillor Mike Bell, Leader of the Council, said the recommendation “is based on affordability, practicality and deliverability, but also recognises the concerns that have been raised about the scale of the larger proposal and its impact on the surrounding area” (North Somerset Council, 2 November).
When it would open
Whichever events option is chosen, the report says planning and contractor procurement would happen in the first half of 2027, with building work starting later that year. Completion is forecast for November 2028. Every option needs a fresh planning consent.
What it means for you
- The vote is public. Full Council meets at 6pm on Tuesday 10 November at the Town Hall in Weston-super-Mare. Anyone can attend, and the council streams the meeting on YouTube.
- Seafront neighbours: the report says the smaller capacity would “reduce but not wholly remove” the traffic, parking and disruption worries raised about 10,000-person events on Beach Lawns.
- Nothing reopens soon. Even if councillors agree next week, the forecast finish is November 2028.
- Your say on the design comes with the new planning application, expected in the first half of 2027. We will cover it on our planning news page.
Have your say