Assessment of the Impact of Beinolharamein Megaproject on the Neighboring Community in Shiraz

Megaprojects have emerged as one of the tools of urban management to create opportunities for economic growth, entrepreneurship and attract national and international investment in many developed countries. Such projects have a wide range of effects on many social groups. Some of these effects are population displacements due to the departure of some residents and the establishment of new groups, changing the identity of neighborhoods and creating an alien physical environment for residents, affecting the type and quality of employment and or unfulfilled promises of resolving social crises and losing trust in the public sector. Shiraz Beinolharamein project was put on the agenda of Shiraz Municipality with the motive of balancing urban services and creating quality urban spaces in coordination with adjacent historical and religious buildings, namely the two holy shrines of Hazrat Ahmad Ibn Mousa and the holy shrine of Seyyed Aladdin. This article evaluates the social, economic, physical and environmental effects of the implementation of this project on the two surrounding residential areas, Eshagh Beig and Lab-e-Ab, based on the results of a questionnaire distributed among the residents of these neighborhoods. This questionnaire, which was answered by 375 participants, was designed based on the impact theory and previous studies to collect the required data. The collected answers were analyzed by the hierarchical multiple regression model. The result of the analysis indicates that all 25 indicators used in the research analysis model have a significant relationship with higher level criteria and have the necessary adequacy to meet the criteria in question. The greatest effect was on the physical dimension and the criterion of access to facilities. However, the project had the least effect on indicators such as increasing construction and improving the quality of buildings, which were some of the goals of this project. The least positive effect of this project is in the social dimension and in cases such as increasing trust in the municipality, government institutions and non-governmental organizations; the desire to cooperate with them; the existence of a memorable place or event; tendency to remain in the place; relations with neighbors and residents; and the use of public spaces.