Residential Building
Residential building, at $128.0 billion (annual rate), increased 4% in August. Most of the upward movement came from multifamily housing, which rose 15% in August, continuing the trend that has been present for much of 2011. Large multifamily projects that reached groundbreaking in August included the $362-million Gotham West apartment complex in New York City, a $137-million apartment complex in Marina Del Ray, Calif., and a $90-million apartment building in Boston.

Through the first eight months of 2011, the top five metropolitan areas in terms of the dollar amount of multifamily projects were: New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago and Los Angeles. Single-family housing in August managed to edge up 1%, as the pattern of recent months suggests that activity is stabilizing at a low volume after the declines witnessed earlier in 2011. The pace for single-family housing in August, in dollar terms, was still 2% below the average monthly pace during 2010.

Nonbuilding Construction
Nonbuilding construction in August climbed 13% to $143.0 billion, making a partial rebound after plunging 23% in July. The dams and river/harbor development category surged 283%, reflecting the boost coming from $1.5 billion for work on the Olmsted Dam in Kentucky, as well as $260 million for the Calaveras Dam replacement project in California. Sewer and waste disposal construction was also strong in August, advancing 64%, with support coming from the start of a $463-million chemical weapons storage and disposal facility in Colorado. 

Other types of public works retreated in August, including a 21% drop for highways and bridges. Murray said, “Of the various project types, highway and bridge construction received the most support from federal stimulus funds over the past two years, but that support has diminished substantially during 2011.” 

August declines were also reported for “miscellaneous” public works (e.g., site work, rail lines, pipelines), down 8%; and water supply systems, down 14%.  For the electric utility category, contracting continued to be strong, with a 16% gain in August. Large electric utility projects that reached the construction start stage were led by two located in California – a $750-million solar power facility and a $500-million natural gas-fired power plant.

The 6% shortfall for total construction on an unadjusted basis during the January-August period of 2011 reflected a mixed performance by sector.  Nonresidential building fell 8% year-to-date, as a 17% drop for institutional building outweighed a 4% gain for commercial building and a 72% gain for manufacturing building. 

Residential building decreased 5% year-to-date, with single family housing down 7% while multifamily housing advanced 8%. Nonbuilding construction year-to-date slipped 4%, as public works retreated 23% while electric utilities soared 129%. 

By region, total construction starts showed the following year-to-date performance—the Midwest and Northeast, each down 13%; the South Atlantic, down 6%; the South Central, down 4%; and the West, up 4%.