Appreciation Week Focuses on How Construction Enhances Lives

HOUSTON—Without a doubt, the construction industry is vital to American infrastructure and the economy. This is why I Build America is declaring September 16 to 20 as Construction Appreciation Week for the second consecutive year. Construction Appreciation Week aims to inspire a national conversation about construction and how it enhances many lives.

“Construction positively impacts the lives of Americans every day, from the buildings we work in to the hospitals where we receive healthcare to the roads we travel on and the homes we live in,” said Susanna Jakubik, marketing manager for I Build America, an organization dedicated to promoting the value of the construction industry. “It’s only fitting that a week be set aside to celebrate and recognize the millions of men and women who have chosen construction as their career path and how this work creates a wide variety of jobs across the United States.”

According to the Associated General Contractors of America/AGC, an association for the construction industry and an I Build America partner, the construction industry has more than 680,000 employers with 7 million employees and creates $1.3 trillion worth of structures each year.

The construction industry offers a rewarding career path for a variety of people including carpenters, electricians, plumbers, accountants, project managers, construction software specialists, business owners and others. These professionals take pride in the construction of solid infrastructure, ensuring that roads are safe, businesses thrive and families have quality homes, according to I Build America. This is also true of construction projects in Houston.

“Construction is a driving economic force in the Houston region,” Jakubik tells GlobeSt.com. “And building costs are rising, in part due to a labor shortage in the industry. That is why we’ve made it our mission to attract more people to the industry by showing them the available career paths that support a great quality of life while building our communities.”

As Jakubik points out, construction costs in Houston are anticipated to steadily climb anywhere from 3 to 5% due to labor shortages and uncertainty of tariff implications, according to a report by Kirksey Architecture. With the current and projected construction projects in the pipeline, the lack of specialized labor remains a concern and applies upward pressure to construction costs. Tariff activity remains unpredictable, so there is pricing uncertainty for some materials as producers work through the potential impacts.

For corporate interiors, costs continue to go up. The market is seeing a large jump in basic and mid-range buildouts and amenities with a flight to quality for the top-end executive spaces. It remains a tenants’ market, especially with former class-A properties enticing tenants with better deals and new lobby and/or amenity upgrades.

The permitting process also continues to be a challenge. Almost everyone is experiencing longer permitting durations, which can impact project schedules and costs. Other variables potentially affecting new developments include the new energy code and post-Harvey storm water regulations, says the Kirksey report.

Moreover, the value of construction projects started in the greater Houston area fell by 65% to $1.4 billion in July, down from more than $4 billion in July 2018, according to a new Dodge Data & Analytics report. The trend was a sharp reversal from June, when starts were up 19% year-over-year to $1.9 billion.

So far this year, Houston area construction starts in the region covering Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto and Waller counties were down 29% to $10.1 billion through July. The total includes $6 billion in residential projects and $4.1 billion in nonresidential projects.

For the month of July, nonresidential projects showed the biggest drop, falling to $571 million, down from nearly $3 billion in July 2018. Residential projects fell by 25% year-over-year to $846 million in July.

Nonresidential building starts include office, retail, hotels, warehouses, manufacturing, schools, health care facilities and churches, while residential projects include single-family and multifamily housing.