THE Secretary of State will have the final say on whether Weston- super-Mare's dilapidated Tropicana can be demolished.

North Somerset's powerful executive agreed in December to demolish the one-time landmark and a planning application was submitted.

But because the Tropicana lies within a conservation area, approval from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles, is needed before demolition can start.

The authority's south area planning committee has now agreed a number of conditions on the planning application which Mr Pickles will have to consider before approval is given.

These include making a photographic record of the building and a plan for the reinstatement of the sea wall.

A plan will also have to be submitted as to how the council is going to protect the ecology of the estuary, as well as the local environment, from the demolition works.

A decision by Mr Pickles is expected within six weeks and if approved, demolition will start before the main holiday season. The move to recommend the demolition of the Tropicana comes despite a consortium of businesspeople – Trop Limited – still wanting to develop the site.

The consortium, led by Puxton Park owner Derek Mead, wants to redevelop the landmark and return it to an outdoor pool within the next two years.

Weston Town Council has also objected to the planning application and two petitions, totalling 4,274 signatures, have been submitted as well as 399 letters of objection.

English Heritage has also asked the authority for a more in-depth analysis on the market history of the site and its benefit to the public. Mr Mead says he has asked for numerous meetings with the authority's leaders to discuss what would be suitable for the site.

But council leaders say they have yet to see any plan from Mr Mead.

North Somerset Council executive member for asset management, Councillor Tony Lake, said: "We have yet to receive a business plan from Mr Mead but when we receive it we will ask our officers to evaluate it and see if it is viable.

"We will then be happy to sit down and talk to Mr Mead about the proposals.

"We have always said that if a viable scheme comes forward which does not involve any council subsidy, we will be happy to look at it."

The Tropicana has been vacant for 12 years and more recently has been used as a storage depot.

There have been several attempts to bring the Tropicana back to life over the last several years – each of which has failed.