The dollar value of new construction starts through the first three quarters of 2014 was $419.5 billion, according to McGraw Hill Construction Dodge. That total was 5% more than the same period a year ago. Most of the growth came from a 17% increase in non-residential building, a sector that got a major boost from Atlanta's $948-million football stadium and a $717-million casino in Maryland. Education, the largest non-residential market, increased 34% in September, helped by $250 million for two Texas high-school projects and a $150-million research lab in Cambridge, Mass.