CHEEKTOWAGA
Building permits run at same pace as 2008 but valued at less than half
Though Cheektowaga’s building permits number about 1,200 for the first half of this year, nearly the same amount as last year, the projects are worth less than half those during the same period in 2008.
The $18 million in projects planned for 2009 is a stark contrast to a year ago –$42 million for the first six months of 2008, a year that included a new hotel, a mall movie theater and a diesel repair shop.
This year’s crop of building permits includes smaller home repairs, such as new windows and doors.
“A lot of businessmen are being realistic and waiting for the economy to change,” said Thomas Adamczak, the building and plumbing inspector, who reported the numbers to the Town Council this week.
“This is something that I’ve been predicting for the last couple of years,” he said of the drop-off in big projects. “It’s just that they’ve slowed down suddenly and drastically.”
The change also means a decline in fee revenue for the town. From January to June of this year, 1,207 permits were issued for $18.44 million worth of building, generating about $145,000 in fees. From the same period in 2008, 1,211 permits worth $42 million resulted in about $282,000 in fees.
Some of the big projects from last year included a $1.5 million diesel repair shop, Cummins Diesel on Aero Drive; a $9 million movie theater that opened in the Walden Galleria; and the $4 million Fairfield Hotel near the airport that opened this summer.
Expensive projects put on hold because of the tough economy include two new Walgreens drugstores and five new airport-area hotels. Some projects could be revived, Adamczak said, “if the economy turns around in a year or two.”
He said he has long expected the rate of building to slow because so much of Cheektowaga has been built up: Twenty years ago, 50 to 100 new homes were being built each year. In the last few years, it has been closer to 20 to 30.
And, the “ripple” development of businesses that followed the 1989 opening of the Walden Galleria also has slowed.
Now, as staffers in Adamczak’s department check on all home-related construction such as sheds, pools and foundations, the lack of pricier business-related work is a help.
“There are multiple inspections. We just don’t have enough people to do them all,” he said. “This just gives us a little bit of a breather. We’ll get a little bit ahead. Somehow, someway.”
Log into MyBuffalo to post a comment
MyBuffalo is the new social network from Buffalo.com. Your MyBuffalo account lets you comment on and rate stories at buffalonews.com. You can also head over to mybuffalo.com to share your blog posts, stories, photos, and videos with the community. Join now or learn more.
Reader comments