City of Lawrence
Planning and Development Services Department
MEMORANDUM
TO: David L. Corliss, City Manager
THRU: Debbie Van Saun, Assistant City Manager
FROM: Victor Q. Torres, Director, Neighborhood Resources
DATE: August 6, 2007
RE: July Building Permit report
Adjustments to previous reports
July Report/YTD Comparisons
For the month ended July 31, 2007 the department issued 165 building permits. For the purposes of this report new construction related building permits issued include single-family (6), duplex, multi-family, business and miscellaneous (17). Building permits issued identified as miscellaneous include new decks, residential accessory structures, additions, pools, carports, etc. Remodel permits issued last month include residential (13) and commercial (13). Permits issued for electrical (27) plumbing (19) and mechanical (47) work are typically for an upgraded electrical service, water heater change-out or furnace replacement. Sign permits (23) issued during the month of July are for permanent and temporary signs.
A review of building permits issued for new single-family homes (6) last month indicates a 57% decrease as compared last July where (14) building permits were issued. For the year, the number of building permits issued for single-family homes shows an approximate 37.5% decrease as compared to the first seven months of 2006.
Building permit activity for remodel work last month indicates 26 permits issued of which 13 are for commercial work and 13 are residential. So far this year remodel permits are about 14.5% above the remodel permits issued for the same period in 2006. Interestingly this is one area that shows in increase in construction activity.
Building permit fees collected during the month of July are at $28,906.40 a 31.5% decrease as compared to the month of July 2006 where the department collected $42,207.75. For the seven month period of 2007 fees collected are approximately 39% less than for the same period last year.
Building permit valuation for the month of July is at $2,607,420. The valuation included in this report includes only the value of the building and associated internal systems such as electrical, mechanical and plumbing. This valuation does not include site work or any other type of work related to the development.
Adjustments to Previous Reports
Adjustments have been made to previous building reports based on further review of submitted valuations. For the building permit application for Pump Station #48 (northwest Lawrence), the contractor submitted a building permit application with a project valuation of $9,300,000. The valuation was used for the November 2006 report and year end summary for 2006. Upon further review, we discovered that the actual building cost is $3,765,840 (infrastructure costs make up the difference and these costs are not used for determining building permit valuation). The report for November 2006 has been reduced $5,534,160.
Similarly, the contractor submitted the building permit application for the Clinton Water Treatment Plant improvement project (2101 Wakarusa Drive) with a project valuation of $13,979,000. Once again, this valuation included some infrastructure costs, so a revised actual building cost equals $3,998,584. The June 2007 report has been reduced $9,980,416.
The City website is updated with this adjusted valuation information and new reports distributed to subscribers. For future City building projects, an itemized cost form will be attached to the building permit application in order to more accurately determine building valuation. Staff is researching how other communities handle city projects. For example, if city projects are given zero value, the balance of valuation data would more accurately depict economic activity in the community, i.e. added additional property tax values. On the other hand, city projects do have economic impact regarding wages, sales tax, etc. The results of this research and any staff recommendations regarding reporting improvements will be forthcoming.
PREPARED 8/01/07, 9:39:42 CITY OF LAWRENCE - BUILDING INSPECTION
PROGRAM CB400L
CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS 2 0 0 7
MULTI-FAMILY (UNITS)
SINGLE __________________________ TOTAL
VALUATION FEES FAMILY DUPLEX TRIPLEX 4-PLEX APTMENT BUSI REMODEL ELEC PLUMB SIGN MECH MISC PERMITS
JAN 2,475,473 23,847.64 5 1 15 17 43 13 19 7 120
FEB 4,522,589 41,153.84 9 1( 4) 1 36 25 46 23 29 8 178
MAR 8,026,529 58,820.91 18 1 3( 30) 1 22 16 36 32 19 10 158
APR 9,515,776 78,800.88 27 1 1 38 15 41 28 23 27 201
MAY 5,589,998 46,773.20 24 2 1 23 23 24 31 52 13 193
JUN 11,094,170 61,345.44 12 1( 4) 31 36 40 36 87 20 263
JUL 2,607,420 28,906.40 6 26 27 19 23 47 17 165
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TOTALS 43,831,955 339,648.31 101 5 ( ) 2( 8) 3( 30) 4 191 159 249 186 276 102 1278
PREPARED 8/01/06, 8:44:50 CITY OF LAWRENCE - BUILDING INSPECTION
PROGRAM CB400L
CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS 2 0 0 6
MULTI-FAMILY (UNITS)
SINGLE __________________________ TOTAL
VALUATION FEES FAMILY DUPLEX TRIPLEX 4-PLEX APTMENT BUSI REMODEL ELEC PLUMB SIGN MECH MISC PERMITS
JAN 3,406,342 31,377.25 6 3 19 7 49 21 55 11 171
FEB 13,618,948 91,288.00 30 6 2 23 30 61 49 21 9 232
MAR 14,941,559 99,573.50 29 1 2( 8) 30 45 50 51 21 17 247
APR 13,027,740 58,160.50 13 3 2( 5) 3 23 49 37 21 27 23 201
MAY 11,601,996 99,385.75 39 1 9( 72) 2 20 25 49 38 53 26 262
JUN 36,401,812 137,523.80 31 1 2 32 32 46 26 57 26 253
JUL 4,285,544 42,207.75 14 1 20 32 48 53 65 16 249
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TOTALS 97,283,941 559,516.55 162 15 ( ) 2( 8) 11( 77) 10 167 220 340 259 299 128 1615