West Grey council is a receiving a report next week on how the building statistics for the first quarter of 2023 are the lowest they have been in the past four years.
Council will be receiving this report for information purposes at its matting on May 16 from Director of Infrastructure and Development Karl Schipprack.
The report highlights building activity for the first quarter between 2020 and 2023.
The statistics show building permits are down by 50 per cent over 2022, with 37 received this year and 74 last year. Nine of the permits received this year were for new homes.
Building permit fees also saw a decline by 58 per cent, with $27,000 in fees from 2023 and $81,000 from 2022.
The largest decline came from project values at 66 per cent. This year project values reached $6.2 million, this is compared to 2022 which saw just over $15 million.
Over the past four years, 2021 was this highest in all three categories.
“We are starting see construction return to pre-pandemic levels,” says the report. “Part of the reason for the lower numbers is due to weather this spring. We are already seeing increases in applications and enquiries that will lead to increased permits issued in Q2 of 2023.”
Council will be reviewing this item at its meeting on May 16 at 9 a.m.