Building applications jump 22% to $265 billion despite dip in requests - PIOJ report

Building applications worth approximately $265 billion were submitted to Jamaica's municipal corporations last year, an increase of 22 per cent over the figure recorded in 2021.

In 2021, the total value of building/planning applications was estimated at $217 billion. 

The disclosure is contained in the Planning Institute of Jamaica's 2022 Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica (ESSJ), which was tabled in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. 

The report indicated that the number of building/planning applications submitted in 2022 fell by almost three per cent compared with the figure in 2021.

But the monetary value grew by 22 per cent. 

Last year, municipal corporations received 5,945 building applications which covered eight of 10 development categories; residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, resort, mixed-use, cellular tower, and “other”.

Most of the applications, 89 per cent, were for residential development, followed commercial development.

The ESSJ said all development categories registered decreases, except commercial, resort, mixed-use and cellular tower.

St Catherine received the largest number of applications (14.1 per cent), followed by 11.4 per cent for Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC). 

The highest number of residential applications (14.4 per cent) were submitted in St Catherine.

The KSAMC received the largest share of commercial applications (15.9 per cent), and a half of all mixed-use applications, while Manchester accounted for 31.8 per cent of institutional development applications.

Trelawny registered most of the applications for resorts (26.7 per cent)

Meanwhile, the ESSJ said approval of applications in 2022 fell by 11 per cent to 4,769 compared with the data for 2021.

The decline resulted in an overall approval rate of 80.2 per cent.

The value of the approved applications was $154 billion, about $19 billion less than the figure in 2021.

The 2,525 applications that were still being processed at the end of the 2022 valued $372 billion. 

About 81 per cent of the applications were approved within 90-days. 

Trelawny continued to record the highest rate of approval (99 per cent) within 90 days.

And the ESSJ said there were 1,101 enforcement actions taken against developments that breached their permits, a 10.5 per cent decrease over similar actions taken in 2021. 

The report explained that this was largely attributed to the fact that the number of warning letters issued decreased by more than a half.

As in the previous year, warning letters and onsite breach/warning notices together accounted for more than 90 per cent of enforcement actions.

Overall, the ESSJ noted that Jamaica's construction industry contracted by 2.3 per cent relative to 2021, and accounted for 7.6 per cent of total output.

"This performance should be viewed against the background of above normal construction activity in the previous year which was not continued during the year as some major projects wound-up. A further decline was prevented by an improvement in the residential construction component, evidenced by an increase in the number of housing starts," the report said. 

The ESSJ said building applications still being processed at the end of 2022 may include some that have been carried over from the previous year.

Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.