Woolworths Coming

It all depends upon what else they are bringing with them – locally they are building a small shopping centre (15-20 specialty stores, Supermarket & Gym).

As the local council has 'bent over' and accepted a few shiny beads, they have approved an oversized white elephant with major concessions for parking (net loss from existing levels) and exceeded the permitted size of the development.

The addition of a full scale supermarket (3000m2+) will kill small retail in our centre, shifting the focus away from the high street into the new mall. Vacancies are already high about 5 long term and 4-5 newer vacancies exacerbated by the lack of parking caused by the development works. Rents away from the centre will suffer (new leases or market reviews).

Rant off

SNM

Personally I would view it as a positive sign. As Matt said, they tend to do their homework and their projections must add up for the big commercial players investing in development. Same can be said for large govt spending infrastructure like hospitals tafe etc.
It is a shame about the smaller retailers being swallowed up in the process but that is all part of our society wanting convenience.

Benderfile – what area are you in?

One thing you could also look at is on the qld government infrastructure website or office of urban management and see what is being planned for your area/region, what infrastructure projects are being planned or being considered, anything like roads, hospitals, nearby airports, mines, anything that will impact on the growth of the area, even population projections. These are usually the things that groups like Woolworths look at before investing in an area.

Typically though if they're spending money to put in a shopping centre, they expect return on their investment, so it depends on your perspective, if growth in your region is a good thing, and an increase in people in the area etc, more jobs etc, is a good thing for you, then its  a big PRO.

If the property is residential, already on the main drag then the effect will be minor (detriment) due to the additional traffic generated. If you are facing the loading dock or on the street where all the deliveries/braking/accelaration of trucks is to occur then it will be a little more (say 5-10%).

If you are in it for the long haul, what does the councils draft LEP hold for you? Is there a rezoning in the wings ie medium density or commercial? Does your block lend itself to that sort of development (size, width) or does it need to be amalgamated with adjoining sites?

I think the things mentioned above may be relevant, such as increased traffic flow, perspective in relation to the new building etc (ie: facing a front entrance vs a rear loading dock), but some of the impact will purely be subjective, such as perception and sentiment. That stuff you can't control. People will think what they want. I'd talk to council and find out what the implications are zoning wise, as by placing a large commercial enterprise directly across the road, they're setting precedent for further commercial development. That means, if your block is right across the road, you have a sound arguement with council for any material change of use or development approval application you (or a potential buyer) put in.

I'd stop focussing on any potential loss because no one can give you a definitive answer on that, and focus on what you can do with it in the future now that the things you can't control (such as Woolies moving in etc) are set in motion. Work with the things you can control (your ownership of the property, future uses, zoning information etc) and look for a solution.
There are a number of ways to approach this one.