The City of North Bay recorded its best year in 2021 for issuing building permits, posting a year-end total of $153,435,492.
The previous record of $101 million was set in 2006. That total was reached in October with more than $50 million worth of building permits were issued throughout November and and December, the municipality said in a news release.
“This is the highest annual total construction value on record, far exceeding the 10-year average of $75 million,” said Mayor Al McDonald in a statement. "Despite the many challenges associated with the pandemic, our City continues to experience economic growth.”
Permits issued are not necessarily a true reflection of construction activity in an area.
The municipality said the residential sector saw the biggest bump, ending the year at $78,434,537. This included 245 new dwelling units, of which 86 were single-detached dwellings, 138 were multi-residential units, 10 were semi-detached units, nine were secondary units and two were duplexes. The 10-year average for total new dwelling units is 66.
“These new housing starts will bring much-needed new supply to the local market and help to ease the housing supply shortage that’s affecting the entire country," said McDonald.
The largest increase since October has been on the institutional side, with year-end permit-issued totals of $51,146,945, up from $15,847,945. Commercial and industrial building permits also increased to $9,520,585 and $12,272,490, up from $8,507,765 and $6,272,490 respectively.
McDonald was expectant of another banner year in 2022 with January construction values up compared to the same month from the last two years.
