Residential construction is expected to meet the forecasted numbers for 2013.
(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)
September 10, 2013 - 3:07 PM
KAMLOOPS – Building construction values are down nearly $30 million in the first half of the year compared to the first half of 2012 but city staff believe larger projects on the horizon will help reach the 2013 forecast of $160 million.
Residential permits are on pace with last year at about $45 million but the commercial, industrial and institutional sectors are at just $24.6 million, compared to $54.4 million only a year ago.
At 25 new applications, subdivision applications are up 32 per cent over 2012 but still well below the ten-year average of 33. In total 287 permits for residential dwelling units have been issued, up from 224 in 2012.
The target for the year is 425 units and with several relatively large subdivisions likely to be finalized by the end of the year, city staff expect the numbers will meet the 10-year average.
In the last 10 years the highest number of residential units were realized in 2006 when close to 200 fee simple lots and nearly 300 strata lots were created over the course of the entire year.
Large projects are also starting to pick up speed with several expansions including Royal Inland Hospital, the Trades and Technology Centre at NorKam Secondary and MolyCorp underway or set to begin. Building permits valued at a total of $10.4 million have already been issued this year to six large companies, including one for the interior finish at the Thompson Rivers University Law School.
When it comes to housing starts Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. shows Kamloops is on par with the provincial average which shows a decline of nearly 13 per cent year over year. The company shows 253 starts for Kamloops compared to 290 during the first half of 2012.
To contact a reporter for this story, email jstahn@infotelnews.ca, call (250)819-3723 or tweet @JennStahn.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013