How's this for an encore?
One year after setting a record for building permits, the City of Estevan is on pace to set another new benchmark.
The June building permits report was issued at Monday's regular meeting of City council and indicated that through the first six months of 2011, 87 permits with a combined value of $28.5 million were issued. That is well ahead of the same time in 2010 when 77 permits worth $14 million had been issued. It also puts the City on pace to beat its record of $50.81 million set last year.
City manager Jim Puffalt says they are excited to see further interest in Estevan and expects this pace to continue throughout the rest of the year.
"There is a bunch of stuff still coming this year that we know of. It's going to be another great year for us," said Puffalt. "There are a couple big projects that are upcoming and possibly three this year yet."
Puffalt said the three potential projects he alluded to are all commercial ventures. He added the City is also continuing to work with developers to add more apartment buildings and rental accommodations to Estevan's notoriously tight market.
"It is our fondest hope that we can get more (apartment buildings) built. We have some under construction right now and we are working very closely with the developer on the land north of the hospital and we want to get him in the ground this year as well as other developers. It's a pretty exciting project that we are working on, on both the east side and the west side of the city. If we put all that together, wow, we ain't seen nothing yet."
Puffalt said another positive byproduct is the fact that private developments, such as the Meadows of Estevan north of the hospital, moves the City from the role of developer to facilitator.
"That is good for us. It takes a lot of resources to do land development or a commercial development so if we can spend our time helping people who want to do business here, do business, that is a plus for everybody."
Although he likely doesn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth, Puffalt was asked why he feels there is still such incredible interest in building in Estevan and he cited the City's diverse economy as a big factor.
"The clean coal project is certainly a big thing for people," he said. "You see companies like Staples and SportChek coming and that is part of the reason why. Oil and gas is strong again and we know that we have our closed circle economy here between the coal mines and the power plants.
"You always are going to have a sector in Estevan that is not affected by really any kind of downturn. There are lots of good things and people see the huge, unlimited potential in the Estevan area."
