Nick Taylor

Social impacts of out-of-centre shopping centres on town centres: a New Zealand case study

This paper provides a case study of the application of social impact assessment (SIA) to decisions on a proposal to build a large shopping centre on a greenfield site at Upper Hutt, New Zealand. The local city council made a variation to its district plan and gave the developer consent, but the decision was challenged in the Environment Court. An SIA was prepared by opponents, contending that the developer had not produced an adequate assessment of environmental effects, including impacts on the social and economic well-being of the community. The Court subsequently ruled against the development. This shows how assessment of social impacts in conjunction with economic assessment can contribute to environmental decision making. The proposed development would have had significant adverse effects on the role and amenity values of the Upper Hutt Central Business District, and on the social well-being of the people of Upper Hutt City.