THIS is the vision of a new riverscape in York which has just been submitted to the city planners.

It is how the now-derelict Merchant's Exchange beside Ousebridge could look if a £6 million transformation scheme is given the go-ahead - and the applicants say that it could come true within a year.

The project would transform the disused building at Queen's Staith, Skeldergate, into a 9,000 sq ft ground-floor balconied restaurant, generating perhaps 40 jobs, with 24 luxury riverside apartments on three further storeys. Construction itself would need up to 100 people.

Designed by York-based architects Crease Strickland Parkin, the scheme is the result of a joint effort by several developers, The Helmsley Group, builders Harrison Developments of Malton, and Michael Howard, younger brother of Simon Howard, of Castle Howard.

The same Helmsley Group - Harrison partnership was responsible for the £10 million CPP northern headquarters at Holgate Park, York, as well as a second CPP building now nearing completion on the site.

And the two companies were also responsible for the high quality Clifton Park office development on the outskirts of the city.

The proposed apartments, some as large as 1,500 sq ft, and mostly with two bedrooms, would start at £150,000, rising considerably for the top-floor penthouses.

There would be separate access to the restaurant and the apartments from Bridge Street.

Ian McAndrew, associate director of Harrison Developments, said: "There have been other attempts to renovate the Merchants Exchange with planning permission granted on several occasions.

"With the housing boom in York showing no sign of slowing, luxury riverside properties of the type we are proposing are in huge demand.

"This, combined with an ever-increasing demand for high-quality restaurants in the city, has been taken into account in the development of our proposals. Already we have had several leading restaurant chains expressing interest in the site."

John Reeves, managing director of the Helmsley Group, said: "York's riverside has undergone a transformation in recent years to reflect the city's status as a major player in the region.

"We'd like to see this prime riverside site restored to the benefit of the city and making a real contribution to a thriving York economy."