Texas & Louisiana City Scoop: Construction Starts in San Antonio
Before the COVID-19 crisis, value of new contracts was expected to fall 5% in 2020
Gains had been forecast for non-building and non-residential sectors, while residential was expected to weaken.
City Grill
Jon McKelvain
Project Executive
Sundt Construction
“Like most communities across the country, San Antonio has felt the impact of COVID-19, and the long-term effects remain to be fully known,” says McKelvain. “In the face of this unprecedented event, we immediately set about ensuring our workforce felt safe on project sites.”
The industry’s speedy response helped ensure that projects remained operational, providing much-needed jobs and ensuring the economic impact of construction remained as stable as possible, he says.
San Antonio is a known tourist destination, and visitors should return as the state begins to open up. “Hotel occupancy tax revenue will be down significantly this year, but we are still seeing hospitality projects moving forward, especially those in the later stages of design and preconstruction,” McKelvain adds.
San Antonio’s market fundamentals remain strong, so McKelvain remains optimistic. “Some of San Antonio’s top industries, including advanced manufacturing, information technology, cybersecurity and biosciences, are all expected to see increased demand based on the lessons learned from the impacts of COVID-19,” he says.
