This image offers a radical new vision of how Brighton and Hove could look in the future.

The eye-catching proposals have been created by Green Sea, a collective of construction professionals who have united to dream up possible developments and get the city talking about the future.

The plans include: ● Creating a new performance venue inside the former gas tank close to Brighton Marina.

● Transforming Edward Street into a tree-lined boulevard complete with community allotment.

●Creating a crafts market and artists’ studio in the heart of Brighton.

Green Sea is made up of professionals from two Brighton-based architects, CAST and ARCH-angels, quantity surveyor RLF and structural engineer QED. Each has worked on the plans for free for more than a year.

They are putting the designs on public display and are asking the public to come up with their own ideas.

Nicola Thomas, director of ARCH-angels architects, said: “The ultimate aim is to create a better city.

“We all live and work here and we wanted to get the ball rolling and start thinking about regeneration in a more holistic and sustainable way.”

Ms Thomas took the lead in the designs for Edward Street, where her office is based.

The proposals would see the carriageway reduced to two lanes, while a community allotment would be dug beside the road, in which to grow produce for use in a new café.

“We work in the street and it’s not a nice place to be,”

Ms Thomas said. “There is a bottleneck at the top and the traffic and buses roar down it, making it difficult to cross.

“We also want to involve more of the businesses here and make the road more of a community.”

Nick Stickland, from CAST, is proposing to transform Victoria Gardens by digging into the ground and building a half-submerged, permanent crafts market.

Its roof would be an undulating roll of grass, while artists’ studios and workshops would be built at ground level.

Mr Stickland said: “It would be a striking piece of architecture and very different from all the other buildings around it.

“We wanted this to be provocative and to get people talking. The area is in the heart of the city but it is not utilised for most of the year.”

But perhaps the most dramatic plans are for the disused gasworks site near the marina.

Ian Waddingham, from QED, is proposing to build a performance venue inside the existing metal structure, which formerly housed the large gas tank.

He said: “It is in a bit of a sorry state at the moment but the structure itself is quite iconic.

“We think it could be home to something unusual that works.”

The area outside the venue would become a hub of bars, restaurants and offices, while the whole site would also be linked to Brighton Marina and Edward Street via a pedestrian walkway.

Mr Waddingham added: “There is not much at that end of the city so this would draw in crowds and help regenerate the rest of the area.”

Michael Creedy, outreach officer at the Brighton Peace and Environment Centre, said: “It is interesting that the architects are trying to engage with the community rather than impose large, corporate buildings that can leave cities with nothing useful to offer apart from nightclubs and shopping centres.”

Mr Creedy added it was important for Green Sea to receive funding to take its plans to the next stage.

All the plans can be viewed at the ARCH-angels office at 128 Edward Street. There is also an online blog at www.green-sea.co.uk, where people can post their views and own ideas.