A $7.8-million building permit for an anchor grocery store in Clearview Market Square helped push the value of construction approvals in Red Deer last month to nearly triple the total for June 2011.
The nearly 30,000-square-foot grocery store, which Loblaw Companies Ltd. is developing in the new commercial centre west of 30th Avenue and south of 67th Street, made up the bulk of the $9.2 million worth of building permits that the city issued for commercial projects in June. Residential projects added another $8.5 million, work in the public category $2.7 million, and industrial construction $1.5 million, for a total of $21.9 million.
That compares with the $7.5 million in construction that the city approved for the same period a year ago. That tally included $6.8 million for residential work and just over $800,000 in all other categories combined.
So far this year, the city has issued $128 million worth of permits, more than double the $62.9 million recorded during the first six months of 2011. Residential permits lead the way at $70.9 million, up from $36.8 million; commercial permits have contributed $40.1 million, up from $21.3 million; industrial projects have accounted for $9.3 million, an improvement from $4.5 million; and public work has generated $7.7 million worth of approvals, as compared with $196,000.
Among the other big permits issued by the city last month was one valued at more than $2 million for a washroom addition to the Red Deer College bookstore and a café upgrade at the college.