Amarillo construction through the roof

AMARILLO – Through September 2014 the City of Amarillo issued permits worth $411 million, a 15 percent increase over $350 million through third quarter 2013.

Roofing permits are still through the roof due to a record May 2013 hailstorm that caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. Hail-aided roofing activity accounts for $107 million of the year-to-date 2014 total, whereas in 2013 roofers launched projects worth $153 million.

In the commercial sector, new construction and renovation permits rose to $195 million in 2014 from $85 million in 2013. Those figures exclude commercial roofing, but include the construction value of apartment and residential duplex and townhome projects.

“The economy is robust, and I think there’s a lot of construction in about every area,” said Amarillo Building Official Scott McDonald. “And there are more prominent renovations that garner attention.”

Shopping centers such as Wolflin Square at I-40 and Georgia St. and Summit Shopping Center at Southwest 34th Ave. and South Coulter St. are undergoing extensive facade renovations.

Residential builders launched construction of 341 homes with a combined value of $91.4 million through 3Q 2014, compared to 370 homes worth $95.7 million in 3Q 2013.

The shortage of developed lots ready for builders that is beginning to ease, according to Lew Bradshaw, executive officer of the Texas Panhandle Builders Association. “It’s a matter of getting the lots. The demand is there. The houses are going up and they’re selling,” said Bradshaw.