$2.2 mil in construction since January

Alexis Barker
NLJ Reporter
 
Construction dollars spent in Newcastle since January are similar to totals spent during average years in Newcastle, according to City Engineer Mike Moore and City Building Inspector Tina Sundstrom. Moore reported to the Newcastle City Council on Nov. 5 that there has been $2.2 million in construction projects since January, bringing in $31,000 in fees paid to the city. Sundstrom later told the News Letter Journal that the amount is similar to previous years – with the exception of years where significant projects, including new buildings, were completed. 
According to reports provided by Sundstrom, construction totals in 2016 were $2,428,647 (similar to 2018) and that no major construction projects were completed that year. Totals in 2017 were $3,354,207, a slightly higher total due to construction of the Newcastle Lodge and Convention Center. In 2015 construction figures were higher at $14,374,707 because of the Wayback Burgers construction and the Weston County Health Services construction.
Sundstrom explained that the $2.2 million total from Moore for 2018 does not necessarily represent an accurate construction total due to the work that does not require reporting to the city. 
For example, she said, the city does not require permits and costs for excavation and electrical work, meaning that these costs are not included in the construction totals. Moore said that the aspects monitored by the city, and requiring permits, are structural in nature. 
“Total construction since January is at $2.2 million. That includes everything from roofing to huge remodels, both commercial and residential,” Sundstrom said. 
She explained that this figure does not include items such as fencing, signs, sewer or water tap, street or alley cuts, demolition, mobile, manufacture or modular setting fees and plumbing because these have a set permit fee, unlike areas such as new construction, additions, remodels, garages, roofs, carports, decks and other construction. According to Sundstrom, fencing and plumbing, for example, do not require an estimated cost to be given to the city and so are not included within the total construction figures the city reports. 
Despite not being included in the construction dollar total, however, these fees are included in the $31,000 fee total that was provided to the city council, according to Moore. 
Final figures, including a breakdown showing where the construction money was spent, whether there were plumbing permits or no permits, street cuts, etc., will not be tabulated until the end of the year, according to Sundstrom. 
Moore reported that the permit fees collected by the city go into the city’s general fund and cannot be earmarked for specific spending. The permit fees help support the full-time building inspector position held by Sundstrom, Moore said. 
“The amount of construction we have justifies the full-time building inspector position,” Moore said. “The fees collected help to offset the cost of the position.”