The City of Red Deer handled an estimated $6.9 million in building permits in June, which is about $922,000 more than June 2018.
But year-to-date permit values fell by $22.6 million.
“There were a lot of longer-term projects already on the go for commercial, as well as public buildings, over the last couple of years. But residential for sure has been on the decline over the last couple of years,” said Erin Stuart, the city’s inspections and licensing manager.
Usually, there’s an increase in residential permits for smaller projects like decks and garages in the summer, she said.
In June, 105 permits were issued and included 71 residential buildings, 24 commercial, four industrial and six public. Notable permits for last month include improvements to a commercial building at 2610 50th Ave. and two additions to the Mount Calvary Lutheran Church at 18 Selkirk Blvd.
Commercial and public permit values were significantly higher than last June, while residential and industrial permit values both dropped.
Commercial permits were valued at $3.9 million, up from $1.6 million in June 2018. The value of public permits was at $1.2 million last month compared to $234,500.
Residential permits came it at $1.6 million compared to $3 million. Industrial permits dropped to $68,000 from $1.1 million in June 2018.
The estimated value of January to June permits was $74.7 million, compared to $97.3 million last year.
In the first six months of 2019, only the value of commercial permits increased. They climbed to $55.9 million from $48.5 million in the same period of 2018.
The biggest drop in value was seen in public permits, which fell to $3.5 million from $25 million.
Stuart said facility construction and improvements for the 2019 Canada Winter Games contributed to 2018 and 2017 permits.
Industrial permit values in the first six months dropped to $3.4 million from $8.1 million. Residential permits also dipped to $11.8 million from $15.6 million.