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Home-building permits drop, but officials aren't discouraged

Date published: 7/21/2007

By PAMELA GOULD

The number of building permits for single-family houses across the region is generally down, but local officials are encouraged by the shift they're seeing to commercial development.

Caroline County Economic Development Director Gary Wilson said the county has never aimed to keep pace with the residential growth seen elsewhere in the Fredericksburg region, so a drop in home-building permits wasn't cause for alarm.

Besides, he noted, the county already has about 7,000 residential lots approved and awaiting construction in the Ladysmith area--but over a 15- to 20-year period.

Caroline saw single-family home-building permits drop from 56 in May 2006 to 24 in May 2007, a 57 percent drop.

King George County was the one jurisdiction in the area that saw an increase in building permits for the same months. But County Administrator Bryan David noted those numbers are still short of the county's peak in 2005.

Census figures show the county recorded 20 building permits in May 2006 compared with 29 in May 2007. That's a 45 percent increase.

David said the good news is the interest major retailers are beginning to show in King George because of the population growth.

"Before, we didn't have enough housing density to appeal to some of your major retailers," he said.

But with the residential growth over the past five years, increased traffic volume on State Route 3 and U.S. 301, and an average daytime population that surges with personnel at the Navy base at Dahlgren, commercial and retail interest is being sparked.

Each of the government officials interviewed this week said the falling numbers reflect the trend in the housing market nationwide.

Kevin M. Gullette, Fredericksburg's director of economic development and tourism, said he expects the trend to eventually correct itself, just as it is correcting from the previous housing boom that sent home prices soaring.

Fredericksburg saw the biggest decline in home-building permits in the region, from 36 in May 2006 to 10 in May 2007, a 72 percent drop.

Gullette anticipates that the housing market will make a fairly quick turnaround if interest rates stay low and the current inventory of homes begins to deplete.

Russell Seymour, Spotsylvania County's economic development director, said the drop in single-family housing permits isn't a problem but rather fits with the Board of Supervisors' goal to reduce residential growth to 2 percent.

Spotsylvania saw a 36 percent decline in building permits between May 2006 and May 2007, but Seymour was encouraged because of the rise he's seeing in commercial permit applications.

A month-to-month comparison from April 2006 to April 2007 showed commercial building permits up 48 percent.

"Within the last eight months, there has been a shift," he said.

Date published: 7/21/2007