Published: October 06, 2008 09:15 am      

Pace of building in city slows after record summer

The City of McAlester did not issue any building permits for new commercial building for the month of September — nor any for commercial additions or remodeling.

However, it looks likely that October might be a bit more active.

In July, the city topped the $20 million mark in building permits — most of which came from multi-million dollar projects for a new Choctaw Casino and a Hampton Inn.

September’s building permits issued were all for residential projects — five new structures and two residential additions and two residential repair permits.

Together, those nine permits totalled $665,000 in estimated construction costs.

Dennis Lalli, who is in charge of building permits for the city, said there were a couple of remodels and four new houses that permits were issued which will show up in October’s report.

Of note was the price tag on the new construction permits the city issued in September: The estimated costs for construction ranged from a low of $85,000 to a high of $105,000, with the other three projects estimated at $100,000 each.

Those are modest prices for new residential construction permits in McAlester, where a permit for a new residence is often triple that number, according to city officials.

For those who follow the ebb and flow of city building permits, the numbers fluctuate considerably from one month to another, as one or more very large projects — like what happened in July — can make the monthly total skyrocket. That July total put the city on an all-time record building pace, according to Lalli. July eclipsed the entire first half of the calendar year for the city, which saw $12.2 million in building permits issued.

John Yates is the news director for McAlester Radio. Contact him at 426-1050.