Union County commercial, industrial permits up in 2010

The number of permits issued for commercial and industrial construction in Union County increased in 2010 while those issued for single family dwellings remained the same and mobile home permits declined slightly.

Catawba Regional Council of Governments released its report on building permit trends in Chester, Lancaster, Union and York counties earlier this month. The report compares permit activity in 2010 with that in 2009. It states it’s analysis of the data “shows that some of the region’s four counties continued to see increases in single family residential building construction which can be equated to increases in population.”

The report finds “mobile home and multi-family permit activity decreased for most of the region. Permit activity for commercial permits was mixed while industrial permits increased throughout the region.”

In Union County, 18 permits for single family dwellings were issued in 2010, the same as in 2009. No permits were issued either year for multi-family dwellings. Mobile home permits decreased slightly with 32 issued in 2010 compared to 33 in 2009.

Two permits were issued for commercial projects in 2010 and one for industrial construction. This was a 200 percent and 100 percent increase, respectively, over 2009 when no permits were issued in either category.

In Chester County, only 20 permits were issued for single family dwellings in 2o10 compared to 35 in 2009, a decrease of 42.8 percent. The number of single family permits issued in Lancaster County increased by 14.2 percent from 494 to 564. York County issued 1,001 permits, an 8.6 percent increase over the previuos year.

No multi-family permits were issued in either Chester County of Lancaster County in either year and York County experienced an 80.7 percent drop from 52 to 10.

Mobile home permits increased 40 percent in Chester County from 20 to 28 while in Lancaster County they dropped 14.3 percent from 7 to 6 and in York County from 88 to 78, a decline of 11.4 percent.

Commercial permits dropped 50 percent in Chester County from 6 to 3 while in York County they fell 5.4 percent from 92 to 87. In Lancester County, commercial permits went from 15 to 22, an increase of 46.7 percent.

More industrial permits were issued in all three counties in 2010 than in 2009. Chester County saw a 50 percent increase from two to three while York County went from 13 to 18, an increase of 38.5 percent. Lancaster County issued two industrial permits in 2010, a 200 percent increase over 2009.

The Catawba Regional Council of Governments’ Regional Building Permit Tracking System has been tracking building permit trends in the Catawba region since 1996.

By Charles L. Warner, Staff Reporter with The Union Daily Times