Construction activity in Summerland was less busy in 2024 than in previous years, according to building permit statistics from the municipality.
From January to November — the latest month for which figures are available — the municipality had issued 179 building permits, with a total construction value of $29,199,062.
This is down significantly from 2021, when Summerland had issued 196 building permits with a total construction value of $58,263,000 during the same period. In 2022 and 2023, Summerland’s building permits from January to November were well in excess of $45 million.
The three years from 2021 to 2023 had the highest dollar value for building permits in the community’s history.
In all of 2021, Summerland issued 203 building permits, with a total construction value of $59,775,300.
In 2022, the number of building permits issued rose to 232, with a total construction value that year of $49,622,000.
In 2023, Summerland’s development services department issued 185 building permits, with a total construction value of $47,190,023.
Brad Dollevoet, Summerland’s director of development services, said high interest rates, tight lending conditions, high construction costs and a lower demand for new housing were all factors in the construction slowdown for 2024.
The complete statistics for all of 2024 are not expected until some time in early 2025.