Kidlington's flood defence scheme has at last been put out to tender.
But the £250,000 scheme could still be in jeopardy because the Environment Agency is unable to reach agreement with one resident.
The agency has signed deals with about 20 families, paying compensation of between £2,000 and £750 for disruption and the fact that the 2ft-high defence wall will cross gardens.
An EA spokesman said a resident on the Watermead estate had still not signed up.
The spokesman said: "We have put it out to tender but we will be unable to commit ourselves to the scheme until everyone has signed."
The reluctance of a man in Cherwell Avenue to allow work on his land had led to frantic last-minute negotiations and bitter divisions in the neighbourhood.
Flood victim David Barnard, 72, of Cherwell Avenue, feared his street was "being held to ransom for the sake of a few hundred pounds".
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