Commercial Construction Starts Explode in May

By Mary Perez, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.

Jun. 25–Commercial construction booms in May

Commercial building on the Coast surged in May, with $57 million in new contracts signed in the Gulfport-Biloxi reporting area last month and $55 million in the Pascagoula region. Residential construction continues to slow from last year.

The latest figures from McGraw-Hill Construction show combined commercial and residential building is down 21 percent in Gulfport-Biloxi for the first five months of 2008 and up 61 percent in Jackson and George counties.

Things are quickly improving, however, in the Gulfport-Biloxi area, which includes Harrison, Hancock and Stone counties. Nonresidential building, which comprises manufacturing, educational, religious, recreational, hotel and other buildings, jumped almost 50 percent in May compared with last year.

McGraw-Hill estimates contracts for future construction based on construction company reports of projects expected to begin within 30 days.

In the Pascagoula area, commercial contracts were only $2.2 million in May 2007 compared with $54.8 million in 2008. Residential construction is holding relatively steady in the eastern Coast counties, down just 9 percent in May.

Future construction

These figures compare year-to-date construction-contract totals for 2008 and 2007. The Gulfport-Biloxi MSA is Hancock, Harrison and Stone counties. The Pascagoula MSA is Jackson and George counties:

MSA YTD 2008 YTD 2007 % change Nonresidential Gulfport-Biloxi $171,342,000 $225,631,000 -24 Pascagoula $64,440,000 $25,604,000 +152 Residential Gulfport-Biloxi $221,084,000 $273,574,000 -19 Pascagoula $113,711,000 $85,042,000 +34 Total Construction Gulfport-Biloxi $392,426,000 $499,205,000 -21 Pascagoula $178,151,000 $110,646,000 +61 – MCGRAW-HILL CONSTRUCTION

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Copyright (c) 2008, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.

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