Bright picture for construction in the South Okanagan

PENTICTON – Building permits are down slightly in the regional district this year, but that news isn’t necessarily bad.

Permits issued to the end of September this year are 448, against 461 at the same time last year.

“What’s different this year is we are down 40 per cent in accessory buildings, but houses are up 15 per cent, manufactured homes 50 per cent and commercial buildings are up 100 per cent. So we are seeing bigger developments this year,” said Regional District Development Services Manager Donna Butler.

Building permit values last year were $41 million, we’re now close to $47.5 million this year,” she said.

Area "D," followed by Area "C" led the way in values, followed by Area "E" (Naramata) and Area "H" (rural Princeton).

Building permit revenue for the year stands at $564,000, against $475,000 in 2015 which is $90,000 higher than budget forecast.

“Last year and this year have been record years for us in terms of permit values and the number of permits,” Butler said.

“The two years are similar, busy years, compared to the previous five years. Values are higher, there are more houses, we had quite a few wineries this year, quite a few manufactured homes. I would say the permits are a bit bigger than the ones we had last year in terms of value. The single family market has been really strong in the region for the last five years,” she said.

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