Celebrating the rich social heritage of Weston-super-Mare to secure the long-term future of an important cultural landmark.

The Tropicana in Weston-super-Mare is a locally loved but underutilised landmark, in need of repair and rejuvenation. Despite its rich social history, a series of past proposals for its revival have been unsuccessful.

Following a robust brief development process with North Somerset Council, it was determined that a multi-use indoor venue would achieve the local authority’s value-driven objectives, balancing community expectation with the project’s funding context and operational need.

A new, state-of-the-art indoor event venue will provide a 1,000-person capacity for music and other events, while a new entrance wing will link the indoor venue, outdoor event arena, and promenade building. This will enhance flexibility, improve queue management, and allow spaces to operate independently or together.

The proposal brief focuses on maximising the impact of available funding. Planned works include repairs and upgrades to the exterior of the promenade building, light refurbishment of the southern wing, remedial works to the 1930s stair at the western edge, and strengthening of the sea wall

The design prioritises sustainability and operational efficiency, targeting BREEAM ‘Excellent’ accreditation, flood resilience, minimal environmental impact, anti-terrorism measures, and effective acoustic controls.

From the outset, RCKa recognised the Tropicana’s rich social history and cultural significance, both to Weston-super-Mare’s local identity and people’s memories from across the country of this iconic British seaside. This understanding led to the creation of a memory archiving project aimed at capturing and sharing these stories as an accessible public resource. This project aims to raise awareness, enhance public involvement, and create opportunities for meaningful social value.

Artists S Mark Gubb and Karen Barry were commissioned to lead a ‘Community Archive Project’, working with the local community to gather personal memories, stories, anecdotes, and photos. These, along with archive material from Weston Library, will be used in workshops with local students to create a new creative output celebrating the Tropicana’s legacy.

This project fed into the broader public engagement process, which included three events hosted by RCKa in Weston-super-Mare. Two public engagement events were held at the Tropicana, attracting approximately 250 attendees, and a stakeholder forum was held with key representatives from local groups. Emerging proposals were discussed with specialist groups such as disability action, and display boards showcasing the site’s history and future potential sparked conversations with local people. Attendees were encouraged to provide feedback through a questionnaire, available both in person and online, which was instrumental in shaping RCKa’s final planning scheme design.

The proposal establishes the Tropicana as a seafront landmark, using distinctive design elements to ensure visibility at the townscape scale. A wave-profiled parapet to the event space creates a distinct silhouette that compliments Weston-super-Mare’s iconic shoreline structures, such as the Grand Pier. A shimmering metal stair tower with diagonal bracing recalls the Tropicana’s pineapple iconography, acting as both a visual anchor and a wayfinding feature. This tower will also house a bespoke artwork by S Mark Gubb, reinforcing the building’s identity as a destination.

As one is drawn closer, the scalloped recessed wave-formed elevations cast dramatic shadows across the building that bring it to life as its appearance changes over the course of the day and as one approaches the building. At night, colour-changing downlighting will wash the recessed façade, enhancing the building’s visibility and presence.

Reference to the Tropicana’s rich social and physical history are woven into the design of new elements, with motifs that highlight its evolving identity. At ground level, a crafted masonry base provides flood resilience and weather durability, while flood-resistant doors at the event space’s entrance aid crowd flow and queue management. A courtyard mediates between historic and contemporary spaces, offering a flexible breakout with informal seating cut into planters.

Archival studies of the existing historic building informed its sensitive restoration, reinstating the original design principles and repairing its architectural integrity. Distinctive heritage elements such as decorative painted ironwork inspired from structures along Marine Parade, connect old and new buildings, unifying the proposal and completing the composition.