The £4m flood barrier that could transform Worcester's riverside

The 700-metre long bund will be part of a new superstore scheme being proposed for the old fruit and vegetable market site on Hylton Road.

The development would stretch from Hylton Road Trading Estate to the railway viaduct, and include Chequers Lane and the site occupied by the Alfa Romeo garage.

The director of the Worcester Property Company, Steve Hill, released the plans for the superstore and the landscaped permanent flood barrier yesterday.

The barrier has been designed with global warming in mind, and to cope with once-a-century flooding.

Mr Hill said the plan was viable - the costs had been totted up, and affected businesses along Hylton Road had been consulted and their principal consent given, even though some, such as the Alfa Romeo garage and Prossers scrap metal yard, would have to leave for new premises.

He added that the Environment Agency, Worcester Action Against Flooding, and Worcester City Council planners were also happy with the scheme.

The whole proposal will cost about £22m, and includes the barrier, a 65,000 sq ft superstore, two pumps and underground water storage and treatment facilities for rain water and sewage that collects behind the barrier during storms.

"The proposals are viable - I've spoken to everyone - to groups I didn't even know existed and they are happy," said Mr Hill.

When Mr Hill presented the plans, they were "largely met with a warm welcome," said WAAF chairwoman Mary Dhonau.

"It's the only chance we've got for a permanent flood defence for decades to come - this is our only way forward," she said.

"In an ideal world I wouldn't want any building on a flood plain, but there have to be some compensatory measures.

"It will benefit all the homes, as they will be entitled to flood insurance and their houses will be saleable again."

The construction giant Mowlem would provide financial security to the project.

The superstore and flood barrier would be built simultaneously.

Mr Hill said the Environment Agency had pledged around £500,000 for the defence, and he hoped to raise the same amount again from businesses along Hylton Road protected by the barrier.

Simon Geraghty Deputy Leader of Worcester City Council, called the plans "exciting".

"They are ambitious proposals that would solve the flooding problem," he said.

The city council's planning manager, Peter Yates, said Mr Hill was one of a number of people he had met over plans for the fruit and vegetable site but that he had not seen the latest version of his proposals.

"If we do get an application for a big store with flood defences running down Hylton Road there will be a lot of people and businesses to talk to to find out what the consequences are," he said.

"I don't want to say I am totally for it or totally against it. If it comes about it will be a very big and very complex application."

However, Mr Hill has admitted there is a catch, as the old fruit and vegetable market - a sixth of the total redevelopment site - had not been secured.

"Without the old market, these plans can't go ahead - it just wouldn't be possible. The barrier needs a big project to pay for it," said Mr Hill.

And Alun Jones, from estate agent Rapleys, which is selling the site, said Mr Hill's group was not the preferred bidder for the land.

He declined to reveal which group is in negotiations over a deal but said a contract should be sealed by the end of the month.

Other issues still to be resolved include how to deal with increased traffic and the future of the recreational ground between Hylton Road and the river.

Peter May, Area Flood Defence manager for the Environmental Agency, said he had not seen any detailed plans from a formal planning application as one had not been submitted, but said he would broadly support anything that would protect flood-prone homes and businesses.

"We've seen some brief details and the concepts to meet the flood risk assessments, and we're happy in principle they could deliver flood protection," he said.