Economic impact of Regional Sports Park

Hastings District Council has released an economic impact report on the Regional Sports Park
showing the Park’s development stage will generate additional new economic activity in the
Hawke's Bay region of $43 million with a total employment impact of 589. 

Sean Bevin, from local economic consulting company, Economic Solutions Ltd, has undertaken an
analysis of the potential Hawke’s Bay region economic impacts of the construction and annual
operation of the Regional Sports Park, and a projected five-year programme of major sports events
to be held at the facility. 

In the report, Bevin said the economic impact work reinforces that the Regional Sports Park in
economic terms will contribute significantly to the overall economy of Hawke’s Bay.
Bevin sums up the reports findings by saying, “the Value-Added gain of $24 million best indicates
the true impact of the events (held at the Regional Sports Park) on economic activity in Hawke's
Bay”. 

The development of the Regional Sports Park comes out of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sport &
Active Recreation Strategy published by Sports Hawke’s Bay in 2004 in association with SPARC
and twenty-five key stakeholders including all four Territorial Local Authorities, Regional Council,
Hawke’s Bay District Health Board, Iwi, School principals association, regional sport and recreation
organisations, as well as rural community groups. A key goal of the strategy was “to increase the
value and contribution of the sport and active recreation sector to the economic and social
development of the Hawke’s Bay region.” 

Sean Bevin was engaged to carry out detailed work providing an economic impact analysis of a
five-year programme of major regional, national and international sports events projected to be
attracted to the regional sports park. The events covered range from cycling, athletics and
gymsports to tennis and soccer, and comprise 30 individual events of varying duration and
frequency of occurrence within the five-year period.