It seems Prince George is becoming busier.
The city says to date in 2019, building permits have already beat last year's total.
To date this year, the total is already $193.76 million, which is an all-time high and equals a four per cent increase with two months remaining in 2019 to be counted.
In 2018, the total value was $186.38 million.
The current 2019 building permits includes $184.41 million of private sector investment, which the city says is about 95 per cent of the entire building permit values to date this year.
Last year saw a total of 515 permits issued compared to 541 so far in 2019.
Multi-family permits almost doubled from 33 last year to 56 this year.
"Historically, the value of building permits is an important measure of economic progress," said Mayor Lyn Hall in a news release.
"A high number of permits is an indicator of increased construction activity and related employment, as well as other direct and indirect economic benefits. Council is very pleased to see the extremely high number of private sector investments and that the economic growth Prince George has made in the previous few years is continuing on its upward trend. We are very happy to see that investors, businesses, and developers are recognizing the outstanding potential of our city."
Of the top 10-valued permits for the year, nine are for privately-funded projects:
- Student housing development at 1404 Patricia Blvd. - Faction Projects inc - $13,000,000
- Fire hall at 2012 Massey Dr. - City of Prince George - $11,840,399
- Hotel by Horizon North at 585 Dominion St. – Mundi SDR Development Inc. - $11,344,000
- Apartment building at 6611 Southridge Ave. – Bic Hayer Rental Properties - $11,000,000
- Apartment building at 4278 22nd Ave. – Hayer Construction Firm - $10,000,000
- Renovation at Pine Centre Mall at 3111 Massey Drive – Prince George Investment Inc. - $9,000,000
- Apartment building at 1087 6th Ave. – A & T Project Developments Inc. - $6,765,850
- Water treatment plant at 1337 PG Pulpmill Rd. – Canfor Pulp Inc. - $5,517,000
- Hotel at 2005 Highway 97 South – HOCO Properties Inc. - $5,123,000
- Apartment building at 3450 15th Ave. - Fortwood Homes Ltd. - $5,000,000
“Prince George is a great community and a wonderful place both to start a family and to retire,” added local developer Robin Hayer, President of Hayer Construction Firm in the release, which is currently building a multi-family apartment complex at 4278 22nd Ave.
“Investing in Prince George provides excellent value, particularly as the Vancouver housing market pushes people further and further into the Fraser Valley. Prince George is becoming more and more attractive both for home buyers and investors.”
