Building boom underway

Photo: pixabay

Penticton is in the the midst of a building boom that doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.

Mid-year data released by the City of Penticton this week shows building permit applications up 35 per cent, with inspections up 38 per cent over the same time last year.

Construction values through to the end of June total $133 million, a 64 per cent spike, although those figures are warped by the hospital and Lakeside Resort expansions.

“We are seeing a significant amount of multi-family development under construction,” said Anthony Haddad, Director of Development Services.

He added that the Sendero Canyon and Ridge subdivisions are pushing single-family build numbers up. The city is also seeing quite a bit of infill development in the downtown core, with duplex, multi-family and townhouse developments going up on the neighbourhoods edges.

“The major projects are certainly a major value contribution to the overall total, but the amount of smaller projects going on right now in terms of inspections, are helping our development community and home builders,” Haddad said.

Looking forward, Haddad says they are very busy in the planning and land use departments, which are good indicators of the construction projects coming down the pipe.

By the end of June, the city had received 165 rezoning and development permit applications, up from 95 last year. Many of those will result in construction projects and building permits in the coming years.

Haddad said they have worked to cut red tape and improve efficiencies to move the various permit application processes along at a fast pace.