Building activity down 5% in the Fort Smith metro for the first nine months of 2019

Building activity in Fort Smith, Van Buren and Greenwood dropped in September from August’s robust numbers, but totals remained high. The three cities issued $25.192 million in building permits in September, down 10% from August’s $28.115 million but up 194% from September 2018.

This month helped push 2019’s numbers for the region closer to 2018’s numbers for the first three quarters. Year-to-date building activity for the region is $161.468 million, down just 5% from 2018’s permitted activity of $169.428 million for the same time.

Fort Smith saw a busy month in residential growth with $5.847 million in permitted activity. Though this is down 14% from August’s impressive $6.79 million in new residential construction, it is up 174% from September 2018, which had $2.13 million in residential new construction. This includes new construction in the Haven subdivision, Stoneshire at Chaffee Crossing and Fuller Estates.

New commercial permits came in at $1.118 million in September, down 79% from August’s $5.382 million but well ahead of September 2018’s $20,000 in new commercial construction.

For the month, the region’s largest city issued 250 permits with a total value of $15.735 million, down 38% from August’s $25.342 million. The month, however, was a 117% increase from the $7.235 million in September 2018.

Van Buren, the region’s second largest city, had a big month, issuing 48 permits totaling $8.504 million, up 388% from August’s total of $1.743 million and up 597% from September 2018’s $1.22 million total. The September total included $868,000 on six residential permits and $7.636 million on seven commercial permits, including a $6.01 million new construction project for Tankersley Food Service at 3201 Industrial Park Road, adjacent to their current building.

Greenwood had eight permits in September totaling $951,893, down 7.6% from $1.03 million on six permits in August. Year-to-date, Greenwood has logged $7.123 million, up 49% compared with the same period in 2018.

REGIONAL BUILDING ACTIVITY RECAP
Combined total for the three cities
2018: $211.463 million
2017: $210.844 million
2016: $211.345 million
2015: $218.899 million
2014: $198.983 million
2013: $202.389 million
2012: $154.64 million
2011: $201.079 million
2010: $149 million
2009: $164 million

Fort Smith
2018: $187.678 million
2017: $169.958 million
2016: $185.783 million
2015: $191.631 million
2014: $174.252 million
2013: $185.057 million
2012: $136.248 million

Van Buren
2018: $17.629 million
2017: $19.665 million
2016: $15.327 million
2015: $16.009 million
2014: $7.918 million
2013: $8.283 million
2012: $8.609 million

Greenwood
2018: $6.156 million
2017: $15.23 million
2016: $10.235 million
2015: $11.259 million
2014: $16.813 million
2013: $9.049 million
2012: $9.983 million