Construction Permits Up in 2012 in Big Bear Lake Big Bear ...

I had a hunch that construction was up this year compared to the last couple of years?and this article from Kathy Portie of the Big Bear Grizzly helps support that opinion.

The hammers sound an optimistic tune in the city of Big Bear Lake. Construction projects and permits have increased during the last couple of years. That could be good news for the Valley economy, which is partly based on tourism, construction and real estate dollars.

Michael Beveridge, president of Licensed Home Improvement in Big Bear, has seen an increase in the number of jobs for his business during the past year. ?I?m still playing catch-up from a couple of years ago, but I am busy right now,? Beveridge said. ?The profit margin is a little lower, but business is pretty good. I say that with a little apprehension, because I think the construction business in Big Bear is doing much better than off the mountain.?

The increase in construction projects has not gone unnoticed by Jack Briner, CEO of First Mountain Bank. ?We?ve noticed a pickup this year, mostly in the last six months,? Briner said. ?Hopefully that?s a trend that will continue.?

Briner said there could be a variety of reasons for the upturn in the construction of new single family dwellings. ?What we?re seeing is less inventory on the hill,? Briner said. ?It could be there have been a lot of sales, or people are pulling their houses off the market. I choose to believe there have been a lot of sales.?

According to the city?s community development director Jim Miller, the number of annual building permits increased from 565 in 2010 to 630 as of Nov. 7 in 2012. Projections for the end of 2012 include 10 new single family dwellings and 16 single family dwelling alterations totalling about $4.5 million in value.

Commercial construction also appears to be on the rise. There were no new commercial projects in 2010 and two each in 2011 and 2012. New commercial projects for 2012 included the Southwest Gas and Big 5 buildings.

Commercial alterations numbered a high of 31 in 2010, seven in 2011 and 11 in 2012. Total estimated cost of commercial projects in the city is $4.4 million. That?s up significantly from 2011, when nine commercial projects totaled less than $650,000. And while there were 14 projects in 2012 compared to 31 in 2010, valuation in 2012 was up about $1 million from two years ago.

Overall, the 630 permits issued by the city for 2012 projects have a value of about $15 million, an increase of more than $5 million over 2011, and about $3.5 million higher than 2010 figures. According to Miller, the contractors provide the city with estimated costs of their projects when pulling permits.

Miller says he believes the improvement in numbers could be a sign of an economic rebound. ?Of course you have to take it with a grain of salt,? Miller said. ?But we are seeing more general work all across the board.?

New construction means more money in the city?s coffers via property taxes and retail sales taxes, Miller said. ?And it means jobs,? he said.

Bob Ludecke, president of the Big Bear Valley Contractors Association, agrees. ?We?ve gotten busy lately,? Ludecke said about the workload for his business, Ludecke?s Electric Service. ?The last couple of months have been pretty amazing.? There has been plenty of remodeling and repair work, he said.

But with the increase in work, there has been an increase in competition for the jobs. ?We?re seeing quite an influx of competition from off the hill,? Ludecke said. ?It?s a mixed bag. When a contractor lays off a good man, he creates a competitor. But I guess that?s part of the growing pains as business starts to pick up again.?

The city of Big Bear Lake?s two big commercial projects were done by outside contractors but Miller believes local people were hired on those jobs. As for the rest of the projects, most are done by local contractors, Miller said. ?I?ve seen a lot of faces at the front counter that I recognize, that I can say,? Miller said.

?Here?s some interesting graphs regarding supply and demand for the Big Bear Lake area. ?I think Jack Briner was on to something.

Source: http://bigbearlakefrontinfo.com/2012/11/16/construction-permits-up-in-2012-in-big-bear-lake/

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