Another Ontario municipality reports record-breaking building totals for 2021         `

Ontario Construction News staff writer

Building permits and construction value in the Town of Saugeen Shores reached all-time highs last year, with 526 permits approved and a total construction value of $154 million.

This surpasses the previous record of $120 million achieved in 2019 and is well above the five-year average of $106 million.

The 2021 total includes residential, commercial, agricultural, and other new builds as well as renovations, additions, and demolitions.

“Saugeen Shores is one of the fastest growing communities in Canada,” said Mayor Luke Charbonneau. “Record high construction value and building permit numbers reported in 2021 tell us that people want to live in our community. Council is focused on leveraging this growth to increase housing affordability and improve quality of life in our Town.”

Saugeen Shores is a community of about 15,000 located on the shore of Lake Huron in southwestern Ontario. Despite the challenges of the ongoing pandemic and resulting supply chain issues, Saugeen Shores added 207 new single-family homes in 2021, surpassing the previous record of 132.

Over the past several years, the Town has worked with builders to encourage new forms of development. With new lands now serviced and ready to build, there are many new areas for growth in Saugeen Shores.

With the high demand for new homes in all forms and the availability of building lots, Charbonneau says he expects 2022 will be another strong year for residential housing.

Town staff has been working with developers to negotiate items that promote affordability and accessibility, including developments with a percentage of rental/below-market units, units with three and four bedrooms, features such as accessible entrances and amenities as well as support for the development of alternative forms from single-family houses.

It is expected that 2022 will also be a strong year for commercial construction.

 

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