RADICAL plans to regenerate 100 acres of Hereford city have been unveiled.

Residents are asked to look, consider and make their views known by mid July.

Herefordshire Council has been given four options to investigate and its cabinet will have to decide which, if any, it wants to take forward.

The ambitious scheme could span 25 years and cost many millions of pounds.

Three of the options are variations of each other. The fourth involves significant differences in the road layout and situation of Edgar Street football ground which could be moved over by 45 degrees.

Linked

Important to all is Blueschool Street. Most traffic could be removed so the whole site could be linked more closely to the city centre.

There are options for a major waterside development round Hereford Canal basin and the Cattle Market could be either headquarters for council and police or a commercial centre.

It is the biggest single regeneration scheme to be considered in Hereford and council leader Roger Phillips said they owe it to future generations to drive it forward.

But public opinion is vital before the final master plan is developed.

That's why the developers chose the Hereford Times in which to reveal exclusive details fo the proposal last week.

Now readers can be involved by:

Visiting the Edgar Street Grid web site http://www.herefordshirepartnership.com/ and completing the response form;

Visiting Herefordshire Council's planning office in Blueschool Street, viewing the exhibition and completing one of the response forms;

Writing to Geoff Hughes, head of community and economic development, Herefordshire Council, PO Box 40, Leominster, Herefordshire, HR6 8ZG or by e-mail to ghughes@herefordshire.gov. uk.

People are asked to examine the options alongside the key issues addressed by the consultants who drew them up.

These include: rationalising land use served by an improved road system, making sure established and thriving uses can be integrated, linking it to the city centre, encouraging crossing the 'ring road', the restoration of the canal basin, the football ground, developing new gateways to the city, making the theatre part of the city centre, investigating the desire for new civic offices and a library, safeguarding and opening up historic parts of the city, promoting new employment, leisure and cultural opportunities, integrating transport, pedestrian facilities and parking and investigating the effects on wider context and the wider community.